JORTH  OF  NIGERL 


ANGUS  BUCHANAN  ^ 


at  LKifAtM/T''  V».>       I 


■jsj^^tttnn^tiJim 


c 


k^uiSff 


OUT  OF  THE  WORLD 
NORTH   OF  NIGERIA 


By  the  Same  Author 


WILD  LIFE  IN  CANADA 

With  numerous  Photographs   by  the 
Author.     Second  Impression. 


THREE  YEARS  OF  WAR 
IN  EAST  AFRICA 

With  a  Foreword  by  Lord  Cranworth. 
Illustrated  from  Photographs  and 
Drawings  by  the  Author.  Second 
Impression. 

A  selection  of  Press  Opinions  of  the  above  ■will 
be  found  at  the  end  of  this  book. 


Digitized  by  tine  Internet  Arciiive 

in  2007  witii  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


littp://www.arcliive.org/details/explorationofaOObucliiala 


'^ 


EXPLORATION  OF  AIR 

OUT  OF  THE  WORLD 
NORTH  OF  NIGERIA 


BY  ANGUS  BUCHANAN,  M.C. 

•  I 

AUTHOR   OF  "  THRRE  YEARS   OF  WAR   IN    EAST   AFRICA,"  AND 
**  WILD  UFB  IN  CANADA  " 


WITH  NUMEROUS  PHOTOGRAPHS  BY  THE  AUTHOR 
AND  A  MAP 


NEW  YORK 

E.  P.  DUTTON  AND  COMPANY 

1922 


(^^ 


TO 

MY     FATHER 

A    THOROUGH    SPORTSMAN    OF 
THE  FINE  OLD  SCHOOL 


PREFACE 

A  NARRATIVE  of  an  odd  undertaking  to  a  foreign 
land.  Odd,  in  the  first  place,  insomuch  that  for 
the  greater  part  of  a  year  a  man's  tongue  was  mute 
to  the  language  of  his  race,  for  the  land  where  he 
travelled  was  native  :  first  to  the  Hausa  people  ; 
later  to  Hausa,  Beri-Beri,  Fulani  and  Tuareg ; 
and  later  still  to  Tuareg  alone ;  while  over  all 
there  was  a  mere  handful  of  French  Europeans, 
who  were  the  military  administrators  of  law  and 
order. 

The  country  was  that  known  as  the  Territoire 
Militaire  du  Niger  of  the  Western  Sudan,  wherein, 
remote  and  in  the  midst  of  desolate  seas  of  sand, 
lies  the  wild  brooding  mountain  country  of  Air  or 
Asben — ^which  was  the  traveller's  goal. 

It  might  be  said  that  the  traveller  was  a  rude 
man,  for  he  was  untutored  in  the  deep  studies  of 
the  scholar  of  many  languages,  as  in  a  measure 
might  be  expected  and  understood  of  one  whose 
occupation  called  him  from  day  to  day  to  don 
rough  clothing  and  shoulder  a  rifle  and  march 
outside  the  frontiers  of  civiUsation. 

Clumsy,  therefore,  were  his  beginnings  in 
speech  with  the  people  of  the  land  ;  clumsy  also 
his  studies  and  understanding  of  all  things  new 
and  strange  which  unfolded  before  his  eyes  in 
that  amazing  succession  of  novelty  that  taxes  a 


xii  PREFACE 

balanced  capacity  of  observation  when  one  stands 
spell-bound  at  the  entrance  of  an  unexpected 
wonderland.  Nevertheless,  day  by  day,  confu- 
sion became  less  ;  small  words  came  of  many 
tongues  ;  piece  by  piece  threads  of  understanding 
became  woven  into  something  durable  and  of  the 
character  of  trustworthiness. 

So  that  to-day  I — ^for,  alas,  I  must  use  that 
personal  pronoun  which  is  hateful  to  me,  and 
admit  that  I  am  the  traveller,  so  that  I  may 
shoulder  the  full  responsibility  as  to  the  faith- 
fulness of  this  narrative — have  taken  courage  to 
tell  my  story  with  all  its  shortcomings,  but  at  the 
same  time  with  an  earnestness  that  may  in  the 
end  reveal,  perhaps,  the  greater  part  of  the 
picture  of  a  strange  land  as  it  appeared  to  me. 

And  I  would  tell  you  that  it  is  a  wholly  pleasant 
task  to  sit  at  home — Hornet  with  all  its  repose  and 
sweetness,  neither  sun-exhausted  nor  limb-weary, 
and  with  a  full  repast  at  hand — and  look  back- 
ward on  the  trail  through  the  Sahara,  and  hear  in 
imagination  the  fierce  wind  that  brings  a  blinding 
sandstorm  on  its  billows,  and  only  have  to  write 
about  it  all. 

But,  though  thus  it  is  to-day,  to-morrow  or 
the  day  after  I  may  be  gone  once  again  to  the 
uttermost  corners  of  the  world — ^for  such  is  my 
calling. 

Some  of  my  countrymen  might  envy  me  my 
to-morrow,  some  might  pity  me ;  but  to  all  I 
would  say  neither  one  thing  nor  another.  Such 
adventurings  have  their  rare  hours  of  pleasure 
and  excitement  and  their  long  weary  periods  of 
trial  and  endurance.    He  is  wise  who  knows  the 


PREFACE  xiii 

hazard  of  life  stripped  of  all  its  romance  and  does 
not  expect  to  find  either  great  compensation  or 
great  gladness  in  strange  lone  lands — in  the  same 
way  as  they  are  seldom  to  be  found  in  any  man's 
labours  of  the  commonplace  day. 

It  is  deep  satisfaction  to  me  to  know  that,  so 
far  as  the  collections  brought  back  are  concerned, 
my  labours  have  not  been  in  vain,  for  it  is  one  of 
my  greatest  desires,  and  the  desire,  I  am  sure,  of 
many  loyal-hearted  men,  to  see  Great  Britain 
ever  striving  to  continue  to  hold  the  honourable 
and  prominent  place  in  the  development  of  the 
Natural  History  of  the  World  which  she  has  held 
in  the  Past.  A  year  or  two  ago  there  were  numer- 
ous and  able  rivals  in  the  field,  and  Germany  and 
America  appeared  to  be  on  the  verge  of  leading 
the  world  in  all  scientific  research.  Though  a 
set-back  to  the  former  has  occurred  through  the 
unfortunate  circumstance  of  war,  rivalry  of 
nations  will  undoubtedly  continue  in  the  laby- 
rinths of  research,  and,  I  trust,  will  be  welcomed 
from  any  quarter  as  a  healthy  element  that  will 
ever  give  incentive  to  the  students  and  scientific 
workers  of  this  country  to  hold  their  own,  and 
offer  inducement  to  public-spirited  people  to 
encourage  and  support  their  commendable 
efforts. 

The  humble  work,  which  in  the  following  pages 
I  venture  upon,  is  not  in  any  way  a  treatise  on 
Natural  History,  but  is  a  narrative  descriptive 
of  strange  scenes  and  peoples  in  Out-of-the- 
World  places  in  which  Air  has  prominent  position. 
And  Air,  in  the  centre  of  the  Sahara,  is  unknown, 
or  virtually  unknown  to  EngUsh-speaking  people. 


xiv  PREFACE 

The  German  explorer  Dr.  Barth,  in  his  travels  in 
Central  Africa,  70  years  ago  (1850-1),  on  behalf  of 
the  British  Government,  passed  through  Air,  and 
in  his  Travels  in  Central  Africa  gave  some  brief 
discursive  description  of  the  country,  which  is, 
so  far  as  I  am  aware,  the  only  account  of  Air  that 
we  have  in  modern  English  literature. 

But  to  return  to  my  first  remark,  there  are  other 
reasons  than  that  given  in  the  first  place  for  term- 
ing this  an  odd  undertaking,  and  they  are  that  the 
journey,  which  totalled  some  1,400  miles  of  camel- 
travel,  led  to  a  land  that  was  almost  virgin  to 
exploration  of  any  kind,  and  of  which  nothing 
was  known  ;  while  by  force  of  circumstances  it 
was  decided  for  me  that  I  must  go  on  my  long 
journey  alone  if  I  wished  to  undertake  it ;  and 
therefore,  perforce,  I  set  out  without  the  two  or 
three  good  comrades  that  can  help  so  greatly  to 
lighten  burdens,  real  or  imaginary,  on  long  un- 
certain trails. 

The  primary  object  of  the  Expedition,  which 
was  undertaken  in  the  interests  of  the  Right 
Honourable  Lord  Rothschild,  was  to  link  up  the 
chain  of  Zoological  Geography  across  that  portion 
of  Central  Africa  which  lies  between  Algeria  in 
Northern  Africa  and  Nigeria  in  West  Africa. 
Previous  research  had  advanced  from  the  south  as 
far  afield  as  Kano  in  Nigeria,  and  from  the  north 
to  the  Ahaggar  Mountains  in  the  Sudan  south- 
west of  Fezzan.  There  remained  a  great  inter- 
mediate space  unexplored  by  naturalists,  wherein 
are  the  French  possessions  known  as  the  Territoire 
Militaire  du  Niger  and  the  unsettled  mountainous 
region  of  Air  or  Asben  ;  and  it  was  through  those 


PREFACE  XV 

said  countries  that  the  expedition  proposed  to 
journey. 

With  regard  to  the  term  Air  or  Asben  which  is 
appHed  to  the  great  range  of  mountains  which  He 
north  of  the  region  of  Damergou,  I  think  it  is  a 
pity  that  there  should  exist  the  seeming  doubt  of 
correct  designation  which  the  double  title  implies, 
and  for  my  own  part  I  propose,  through  my  narra- 
tive, to  refer  only  to  the  country  as  Air,  which  is 
the  correct  name  in  the  language  of  the  Tuaregs 
who  inhabit  the  region,  whereas  Asben  is  a  Hausa 
name,  and  would  appear  to  have  no  particular 
claim  to  recognition  since  it  is  not  Hausa  country 
in  the  present  era,  whatever  it  may  have  been  in 
the  distant  past,  when  tribal  and  religious  wars 
were  continually  forcing  territories  to  change 
hands. 

The  altitude  readings,  which  I  note  during  the 
narrative,  since  many  of  them  have  not  been  pre- 
viously recorded,  were  taken  with  an  aneroid 
barometer  set  to  sea  level  before  starting  on  the 
expedition. 

Although  the  expedition  was  to  a  French 
colony,  I  feel  that  it  was  foreign  only  so  far  as 
concerned  the  difference  of  language,  for  the  few 
officers  I  encountered,  who  so  ably  helped  me  on 
my  way,  if  help  I  needed,  were  big-hearted  men 
of  the  Lone  Places  among  whom  one  could  not 
feel  a  stranger.  To  all  I  owe  thanks  for  such 
success  as  I  gained,  and  gladly  give  it  should  any 
old  comrade  of  the  open  road  read  this  humble 
work. 

I  am  indebted,  also,  to  the  administrative 
officials  in  charge  of  the  Kano  district  who  kindly 


xvi  PREFACE 

rendered  me  many  services  ere  I  set  out  to  cross 
the  boundary. 

Collecting  in  the  field  is  one  side  of  Natural 
History  research,  but  there  is,  as  you  are  aware, 
another  side — ^the  painstaking  study  of  the  speci- 
mens after  they  are  unpacked  on  the  museum 
benches  at  home.  And  I  am  much  indebted  to 
Lord  Rothschild,  Dr.  Hartert,  and  the  British 
Museum  for  having  most  kindly  furnished  me 
with  the  full  results  of  the  skilled  studies  of 
research  to  which  the  collections  have  been 
subjected  since  my  return,  for  in  so  doing  they 
have  placed  most  valuable  records  at  my  disposal, 
so  that  I  may  draw  from  that  large  fund  of 
knowledge  when  desired  and  enhance  the  value 
of  this  work. 

Angus  Buchanan. 


CONTENTS 

PAQB 

Introduction    (by    Lord    Roths- 
child)      .....     xxi 

CHAPTER 

I.    Engaging  Boys — ^Lagos        .         .         1 
II.    Kano,  Northern  Nigeria    .         .       13 

III.   Hausa  —  Currency  —  Camels  — 

Travelling       ....       33 

rV".   A  Day's  Work  Collecting  .       60 

V.    ZiNDER 73 

VI.    The    Shores    of    Bushland    and 

Desert     ,         ....       82 

VII.    Ostrich  Hunting         .         .         .95 

VIII.    Leaving  the  Bushland  behind — 

Air  entered    ....     121 

IX.    Agades         .....     134 

X.    Air:  North  to  Baguezan  Mountains 

and  Hunting  Barbary  Sheep  .     148 

2  xvii 


xviii  CONTENTS 

PA.aB 

XI.    In  Baguezan  Mountains     .         .164 

XII.    The  Northern  Regions  of  Air  : 

Part  I 177 

XIII.    The  Northern  Regions  of  Air  : 

Part  II 197 

KIV.    East  of  Baguezan,  Aouderas  and 

Tarrouaji        .  .  .  .215 

XV.    The  Tuaregs  of  Air  .         .         .     232 

XVI.    Heading  for  Home     .         .         .     241 

Appendix  :  New  Species  discovered       .     247 

Index    .......     255 


LIST   OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Out  of  the  World  ,         .         .        Frontispiece 

FACINQ  PAOa 

12 


The  Author   ...... 

View  of  Kano  City        .... 

A  Street-lane  in  Kano 

An  Entrance  in  the  Mud  Walls  of  Kano 

A  Hausa  Native  riding  an  Ox,   Kano    . 

Cattle  of  Hausaland     .... 

Natives    drawing    Water    at    Bab  an    Tubki 
Wells,  Zinder  .... 

Among  the  Rocks  of  Zinder 

Beri-Beri  Bushmen,  Damergou 

Tanout  Village      ..... 

Young  Ostriches    ..... 

Dorcas  Gazelle      ..... 

A  Lonely  Tuareg  Camp  in  the  Bush     . 

Sundown  in  the  Desert 

View  of  Agades      ..... 

Throne-Room  of  the  Sultan  of  Agades  . 

My  Caravan  on  the  Arrajubjub  River 


12 
28 
28 
42 
42 

76 

76 

92 

92 

104 

104 

124 

124 

142 

142 

150 


XX  LIST    OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACDia  PAGE 

Typical  Air  Landscape  .....  150 
Typical    Boulder    Composition  of  many  Air 

Mountains  and  Hills  .  .  .  .168 
MiNEROU,   Chief  of  Baguezan,  and  Saidi,  my 

GOUMIER   ....  ...      168 

Wild  Men,  Northern  Air       .         .         .         .190 

Approaching  Iferouan   .         .         .         .         .190 

In  Aguellal  Mountains  at  3,100  Feet  .  .  202 
We  find  a  Precious  Pool  of  Water  S.E.  of 

Aguellal,  Air  ......     202 

Teouar,  a  Typical  Deserted  Village  of  Air  .  218 
Tuareg  Boys  of  Baguezan  Mountains  .  .  234 
"  Atagoom,"  a  Tuareg  Native  of  Air  in  Typical 

Dress 234 

Agades  Fort,  Built  with  Clay-mud  .  .  242 
Caught  in  Flood  Rains  below  Tegguidi  .  242 
Map  of  Author's  Route  ,         .         .       At  End 


INTRODUCTION 

Ever  since  Dr.  Hartert  *  came  to  Tring,  twenty- 
nine  years  ago,  I  have  been  keenly  interested  in 
the  isolated  mountains  of  Asben  or  Air  in  the 
middle  of  the  Sahara,  and  the  country  surround- 
ing them.  This  was  chiefly  owing  to  Dr.  Har- 
tert's  account  of  his  interview  with  some  Tuareg 
traders  who  had  come  down  into  Nigeria  to  sell 
salt.  This  interest  was  intensified  by  our  own 
explorations  in  Algeria  and  "  Les  Territoires  du 
Sud,"  and  Geyr  von  Schweppenburg  and  Spatz's 
journeys  in  the  Ahaggar  Mountains,  all  of  which 
yielded  many  zoological  treasures.  Therefore, 
Dr.  Hartert  and  I  felt  much  satisfaction  when, 
after  his  strenuous  labours  in  the  war  in  East 
Africa,  Captain  Angus  Buchanan  fell  in  with  our 
views  and  undertook  to  explore  Asben  and  the 
country  between  it  and  Kano,  in  North  Nigeria, 
the  terminus  of  the  new  railway.  The  eleven 
months  occupied  in  the  undertaking  have  proved 
most  fruitful,  for,  besides  the  interesting  ethno- 
logical and  other  facts  recorded  in  the  subsequent 
pages  of  this  book,  the  zoological  results  have 
been  most  valuable.  These  latter  results  have 
been  published  in  Novitates  Zoologicee,  the  journal 
of  the  Tring  Museum,  in  a  series  of  articles  by 

^  Director  of  Tring  Museum. 


xxii  INTRODUCTION 

Messrs.  O.  Thomas  and  M.  A.  C.  Hinton,i  Dr. 
Hartert  and  myself. 

The  number  of  new  species  and  sub-species  is 
very  large,  especially  among  the  Mammals  ;  Mr. 
Thomas  indeed  says  that  he  has  never  known  a 
collection  of  Mammals,  from  a  limited  area  such 
as  this,  with  so  large  a  proportion  of  novelties. 
Among  the  new  Mammals,  the  most  interesting 
are  undoubtedly  the  "  Gundi "  {Massoutiera), 
the  Rock-Dassy  (Procavia),  and  the  "  Mouflon  " 
(Ammotragus),  because  of  the  immense  stretches 
of  desert  which  separate  them  from  allied  species 
and  sub-species.  • 

Among  the  Birds,  one  of  the  most  interesting 
is  the  beautiful  goatsucker  (Caprimulgus  eximius 
simplicior),  for,  although  a  slightly  different  sub- 
species, it  illustrates  once  more  the  fact  that  many 
species  inhabit  a  belt  south  of  the  Sahara  from 
N.E.  Africa  across  the  African  Continent  to 
West  Africa,  while  most  of  the  forms  north  and 
south  of  that  belt  do  not  show  such  a  wide  range 
from  east  to  west. 

Among  the  Lepidoptera,  the  most  interesting 
species  are  all  true  "  desert "  forms,  with  a 
wide  range  reaching  through  Arabia  into  India, 
although  several  new  species  and  sub-species  of 
butterflies  and  moths  of  great  interest  are  also  in 
the  collection. 

From  a  zoo-geographical  point  of  view  the  col- 
lection is  most  valuable,  for  we  now  know  zoologi- 
cally a  complete  section  of  the  "  Great  Saharan 
Desert,"  with  the  exception  of  the  small  portion 
between    the   Ahaggar   Mountains    and    Asben, 

^  Of  the  British  Museum  of  Natural  History. 


INTRODUCTION  xxiii 

and  although  the  region  of  the  Sahara  south  of 
the  former  is  undoubtedly  tropical,  and  not 
palaearctic,  in  its  fauna,  it  is  very  remarkable 
what  a  large  number  of  palaearctic  species  and 
genera  are  still  to  be  found  there.  Unlike  most 
of  the  collecting-grounds  of  the  Old  World,  which 
can  still  yield  new  and  undescribed  forms,  Asben 
and  its  neighbourhood  were  absolutely  virgin 
soil  zoologically,  and  Captain  Buchanan's  speci- 
mens are  the  first  to  reach  the  hands  of  scientific 
workers.  Considering  the  long  journey  by  camel 
and  the  fact  that  Captain  Buchanan  was  work- 
ing absolutely  single-handed,  the  collecting  of 
over  1,100  Birds  and  Mammals  and  over  2,000 
Lepidoptera,  in  a  region  notorious  for  its  paucity, 
both  of  species  and  individuals,  is  a  remarkable 
achievement,  and  proves  him  to  be  a  most  efficient 
explorer  and  naturalist. 

Rothschild. 

TBma  Museum, 

March  22nd,  1921. 


OUT  OF  THE  WORLD 

CHAPTER  I 

ENGAGING   BOYS — ^LAGOS 

It  was  at  Seccondee  on  the  Gold  Coast  that 
"  John  "  came  aboard.  Do  not  mistake  me  ! — • 
he  was  not  a  first-class  passenger  nor  an  acquaint- 
ance. Far  from  it ;  he  was  one  of  a  motley 
crowd  of  jabbering  natives  which,  with  an  extra- 
ordinary conglomeration  of  hand-carried  house- 
hold belongings,  were  put  aboard  from  surf  boats 
and  herded  on  to  the  open  after-deck — already 
stacked  with  sacks  of  Kola  nuts  from  Sierra 
Leone — ^like  so  many  head  of  frightened  sheep. 

No  !  John  was  certainly  not  of  a  race  or  rank 
to  claim  intimate  acquaintance.  In  the  first 
place  he  was  as  black  as  the  ace  of  spades,  which 
in  itself  for  ever  barred  him  from  any  claim  to 
equality  or  kinship — a  hard  plain  fact  which  any 
old  colonial  on  "  The  Coast  "  or  anywhere  in 
Africa  would  endorse,  while  with  grave  misgivings 
regretting  the  extraordinary  policy  and  laws  that 
grow,  from  what  sane  source  is  past  understanding, 
more  and  more  lenient  in  their  evident  stiffness  of 
opinion  to  release  native  inhabitants  of  our 
colonies  from  the  slightest  restraint  of  a  dominant 
European  rulership ;    policy  that  is  reacting — 

I 


2  ENGAGING    BOYS— LAGOS 

surely  not  with  short-sighted  blindness  ? — to 
bring  about  the  downfall  of  the  fine  old  decorum 
of  the  white  man's  prestige  which  natives  natur- 
ally observed  in  every  respect  in  the  past.  And 
it  would  be  well  to  remember,  those  singular 
innovations  which  are  being  brought  in  on  the 
tide  of  European  civilisation  are  being  entrusted 
to  natives  who  are  endowed  by  nature  with  char- 
acteristics of  a  different  race  type  to  ours  and 
which  are  irrevocably  unchangeable  at  the  line  of 
their  limitations.  European  education  and  Euro- 
pean laws  along  certain  well-chosen,  sure-set 
lines  can  cultivate  those  characteristics  of  the 
native  to  a  certain  standard — hut  not  one  step 
further.  It  is  the  logic  of  Nature ;  up  to  a  point, 
with  many  creatures  and  plants  and  even  matter, 
artificial  cultivation  is  possible  and  beneficial ; 
but  over- experiment  with  the  material,  over- 
nurture — and  Nature  steps  in  and  calls  a  decisive 
halt  in  this  tampering  with  her  creations,  and 
death  or  decline  is  thenceforth  observed. 

It  is  difficult  for  anyone  to  foresee  the  Future — 
that  word  of  wonderful  depth  which  is  the  most 
awesome  in  the  English  language — into  which  men 
may  cast  the  biggest  venturings  of  experiment  in 
the  world  ;  and  generations  watch  them  rise  and 
flourish  if  they  be  right,  or  flounder  and  go  under 
if  they  be  wrong.  And  surely  it  shall  never  be — 
this  would-be  blending  of  two  entirely  opposite 
races  to  a  semblance  of  equality,  though  it  is  for 
the  present  this  ugly  threat  which  is  often  before 
the  "  Coaster  "  and  the  men  on  the  bush  stations 
to-day. 

But  to  return  to  John,  for  John  has  importance 


"EAST  IS  EAST"  8 

in  the  narrative,  which  African  poHtics  have  not, 
the  ship  had  hauled  anchor  and  cleared  Seccondee 
for  Lagos,  and  I  stood  solitary  by  the  taffrail  of 
the  upper  deck  looking  idly  on  the  low  line  of 
typical  African  shore  that  lay  indistinctly  in  the 
north.  The  deck,  for  the  moment,  was  free  of 
passengers,  for  it  was  in  the  quiet  afternoon  hours, 
when  almost  everyone  on  board  retired  to  indulge 
in  a  pleasant  book  or  a  snooze,  as  is  the  after- 
lunch  habit  in  hot  enervating  climates  like  Africa. 

But,  suddenly,  I  was  not  alone,  and  a  native, 
who  had  no  doubt  watched  his  chance  to  break 
the  bounds  of  the  lower-deck,  stood  beside  me 
waiting  permission  to  speak. 

"  What  do  you  want  ?  "  I  asked,  somewhat 
curiously.  "  You  have  no  right  to  be  on  this 
deck." 

"  I  want  I  make  work  for  you,  sir,"  replied  the 
native.  "  My  massa,  he  live  for  back,  him  go 
England.     I  plenty  glad  work  for  you,  sir." 

"  But,"  I  warned,  "  suppose  I  want  a  boy  ?  I 
am  a  hunter.  I  am  not  going  to  live  in  a  town  or 
station  in  Nigeria  where  the  duties  of  cook-boy  or 
house-boy  are  ordinary.  I  am  going  to  travel  far 
in  a  strange  land  north  of  Kano  ;  work  will  be 
hard  and  plenty  ;  good  boys  will  catch  good  pay  ; 
bad  boys  will  go  home  quick  and  catch  nothing. 
You  are  a  coast  boy,  and  I  do  not  think  you  are 
fit  for  bush  in  far  country." 

But  the  boy  was  not  so  easily  discouraged, 
either  he  wanted  employment  lu-gently  or  was 
ignorant  of  the  full  purport  of  my  "  white  man 
talk,"  for  he  answered  in  his  pigeon  English,  with  a 
broad  grin  of  hopefulness :  "  Dat  be  all  same  same, 


4  ENGAGING    BOYS— LAGOS 

sir!  I  no  fit  savvy  dat  bush  now,  dat's  true, 
by-n-bye  I  plenty  fit  to  look  him.  I  want  work 
for  you — I  good  boy,  sir  1  " 

To  which  what  could  one  do  but  smile  ?  But, 
nevertheless,  I  now  looked  the  boy  over  more 
attentively. 

His  thick-set  bulldog  head  was  excessively 
ugly  and  unprepossessing  in  all  its  features.  Any 
face  is  dull  which  has  no  attraction  in  the  eyes  or 
in  the  mouth,  and  those  of  this  negro  native  had 
none,  for  the  soiled  whites  of  his  eyes  rolled  alarm- 
ingly, and  the  large  mouth  had  lips  rolled  into  one 
that  would  have  served  three  ordinary  men 
adequately.  Moreover,  he  was  an  Awori  native 
of  the  Coast,  and  had  profuse  tribe  marks  on  his 
face  :  three  small  deep-stamped  marks  over  the 
cheek-bones,  and  a  line  of  fourteen  marks  of  the 
same  stamp  between  the  eye-corners  and  ears, 
while  on  the  centre  of  the  forehead  he  had  a  sort 
of  square  and  compass  scroll  more  lightly  branded 
than  the  rest.  He  was  clad,  not  in  the  pictur- 
esque nakedness  of  the  aboriginal,  but,  after  the 
fashion  of  the  majority  of  "  boys  "  on  the  Coast,  in 
the  cast-off  clothing  of  some  late  master — even  to 
a  tweed  cap,  which  sat  with  ridiculous  incongruity 
on  his  black  woolly  head.  Altogether  he  was  a 
regular  dandy  in  "  rig-out."  But  he  was  no 
exception  in  that  respect,  for  the  comical  and 
audacious  dress  of  house-boys  of  his  kind,  who 
are  inordinately  full  of  personal  swagger,  has  ever 
been  a  source  of  much  amusement  to  colonials 
and  strangers  alike. 

It  did  not  take  long  to  size  the  native  up  and 
note  those  brief  somewhat  unfavourable  charac- 


CONCERNING  JOHN  5 

teristics.  But  at  the  same  time  I  had  appraised 
the  thick-set,  sturdy  build  of  the  boy,  so  that  the 
conclusions  I  finally  arrived  at  were  :  "  An  ugly 
devil — not  over  intelligent,  no  doubt — but  strong 
and  healthy,  and  should  stand  up  through  plenty 
of  hard  work — and  he  looks  honest." 

"  What's  your  name  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  John,  sir  !  "  he  replied.  "  John  Egbuna," 
he  added,  by  way  of  giving  his  full  name  ;  for  it 
was  no  less  a  person  than  he  who  had  come  aboard 
at  Seccondee. 

"  All  right,"  I  said,  moving  towards  the  deck 
smoking-room.  "  Come  to  me  when  we  dock  at 
Lagos  and  you  can  work  for  me." 

Thus  John  made  his  appearance.  By  keen 
watchfulness  he  had  risked  the  abuse  of  ship's 
officers  and  stolen  a  chance  interview,  and  taking 
him  on  in  this  way  was  a  chance  shot,  but  time 
proved  it  to  be  a  lucky  one,  for  John  went  right 
through  the  whole  expedition,  ever  faithful  as  a 
dog  to  his  master,  while  his  companions,  one  by 
one,  fell  out. 

The  ship  docked  at  Lagos  after  she  had  come 
in  over  the  bar  on  an  early  morning  tide,  and 
steamed  slowly  inshore  and  up  the  wide  river-like 
tidal  lagoon  of  muddy  water  disfigured  with 
surface-floating  green  slime-Hke  vegetation  and 
white  froth,  which  escaped,  no  doubt,  from  some 
swamp  bank  further  inland.  It  was  a  lagoon 
which  was  nevertheless  pictiu-esque  and  novel, 
with  a  light  morning  haze  upon  waters  from 
which  protruded  the  poles  and  loosely  hanging  nets 
of  many  fish  traps,  past  which,  or  about  which, 
up  and  down  the  lagoon,  plied  long  lithe  dug-outs, 


6  ENGAGING    BOYS— LAGOS 

and  odd-shaped  craft  of  many  kinds,  single-sailed, 
or  pole-driven,  or  paddled,  and  paintless  and 
dark  as  their  negro  occupants,  except  where  the 
gay  colour  of  a  cotton  garb  caught  the  eye  on  a 
boatman  more  extravagant  than  his  brethren, 
who  were  generally  rag-clad  or  naked  to  the 
waist. 

At  Lagos,  when  I  had  landed,  I  made  the  dis- 
concerting discovery  that  there  was  no  hotel — a 
circumstance  strange  in  a  port  of  importance  and 
modern  in  nearly  every  other  way.  I  had  natives 
to  engage  in  Lagos  for  my  forthcoming  travels, 
and  other  business,  and  therefore  it  was  necessary 
to  stay  a  few  days  in  the  place.  Lagos,  being  a 
crowded  town,  was  not  the  sort  of  place  one  could 
pitch  a  tent  in,  or  that  would  have  been  quickly 
done ;  but  I  finally  overcame  the  difficulty  by 
interviewing  the  purser  on  the  ship,  who  kindly 
allowed  me  to  retain  my  berth  on  board  while  the 
ship  unloaded  her  cargo. 

And  in  that  little  cabin,  in  the  course  of  events, 
some  strange  interviews  were  entered  on.  I  had 
an  old-country  friend  on  shore,  and  with  true 
Coast  courtesy  he  sent  his  head-boy  out  into  the 
native  town  to  carry  the  news  that  there  was  a 
white  man  on  the  ship  who  wanted  natives  to  go 
north  with  him,  but  that,  "  he  want  to  look  boy 
fit  to  skin  fine  fine." 

Native  news  travels  fast  even  in  modern  Lagos, 
and  soon  boys  of  various  races  and  types  began 
to  come  aboard  armed  with  their  pass-books  and 
letters  testifying  character — in  some  cases  letters 
which  were  truly  from  past  masters,  in  others, 
false  and  flattering  documents  borrowed  for  the 


SELECTING  STRANGE  BOYS  7 

occasion  were  tendered,  such  is  the  unscrupulous 
craftiness  of  some  castes. 

The  outcome  of  two  days  of  interviewing 
natives  was  not  very  encouraging,  since  no  boy 
was  discovered  who  could  skin  birds  or  animals 
with  practical  skill.  However,  at  the  end  of  the 
second  day  I  had  selected  three  boys  and  dis- 
missed the  rest,  despite  their  clamoiu-ings  to  be 
heard  further  and  reluctance  to  leave  the  ship. 

One  of  the  natives  held  over  for  fiuther  exami- 
nation was  an  extraordinary  individual,  with  all 
smooth  face  features  absolutely  obliterated  by 
the  mass  of  seared  vertical  lines  of  tribe  marks 
which  ornamented  his  entire  face.  He  was  of 
middle  age,  lean,  and  hard-looking,  and  obviously 
the  hunter  and  tracker  that  he  claimed  to  be. 
What  this  individual  proposed,  when  an  engage- 
ment was  broached,  was  that  he  be  allowed  to  go 
to  his  tribe  in  the  first  place  to  take  the  news  of 
his  departure  to  his  people,  and  then  return  and 
catch  up  with  my  caravan  wherever  I  might  be. 
Inquiry  revealed  that  his  home  was  distant  a 
whole  month's  travel  by  canoe  along  the  coast.  It 
would  take  him  two  months  to  go  and  return,  and 
after  that  he  would  have  to  find  my  camp  "  some- 
where "  north  of  Kano.  Yet  he  appeared  to  think 
nothing  of  such  distance  and  to  take  to  travelling 
as  a  duck  to  water,  and  declared  with  conviction 
that  he  would  meet  "  master  "  anywhere,  if  he 
would  but  employ  him.  I  had  met  this  type  of 
tireless  hunter  among  natives  before,  and  they 
are  invariably  very  good  if  you  can  secure  them. 
But,  all  things  considered,  taking  the  man  on  in 
faith  of  fulfilment  of  merely  verbal  promises,  and 


8  ENGAGING    BOYS— LAGOS 

advancing  him  some  money  to  provide  for  his 
wives  in  his  absence,  savoured  too  much  of  bad 
business  ;  and  as  he  would  not  pack  up  and  come 
along  as  he  stood,  he  was  finally  allowed  to  go, 
with  the  understanding  that  if  he  hurried  to  his 
tribe  and  caught  up  with  the  expedition  north  of 
Kano,  he  would  then  be  taken  on  at  good  wages, 
and  his  "  back- time  "  made  good.^ 

The  other  two  boys  were  Hausa  natives,  the 
tribe  that  I  had  been  strongly  advised  by  men  of 
experience  to  get  my  boys  from  if  possible.  They 
were  both  young — 20  to  23 — and  had  been  se- 
lected from  the  crowd  as  being  in  appearance  the 
most  intelligent,  for  as  it  was  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance to  secure  some  help  in  dressing  specimens 
in  the  field,  it  was  my  intention  to  teach  them  to 
skin  if  in  early  practice  they  should  show  any 
aptitude  for  the  work. 

Hence  one  of  them  was  sent  ashore  to  the 
market  in  Lagos  with  instructions  to  buy  a  pair 
of  tame  pigeons,  which  would  suffice  for  my  pur- 
pose in  lieu  of  a  specimen  dropped  to  the  gun. 

Thereafter,  down  in  the  hot  narrow  cabin, 
while  the  ship  lay  at  anchor,  I  gave  an  object 
lesson  on  bird  skinning — a  necessary  but  not  very 
edifying  proceeding.  To  begin  with,  there  was 
a  ridiculous  familiar  pillow- cushion  aspect  about 
those  dead  tame  pigeons  which  robbed  one  at  once 
of  any  aesthetic  enthusiasm,  no  matter  how 
solemnly  I  was  prepared  to  set  about  the  delicate 
operation  of  skinning ;  and  a  glance  from  the  work- 
table  to  my  pupils,  great  loutish  curly-headed 
negroes,  with  no   appreciable   sign   of  dawning 

^  But  this  he  did  not  do,  for  I  never  saw  him  again. 


NATIVES   PRACTISE  SKINNING  9 

understanding  as  my  handiwork  proceeded,  made 
me  much  more  inclined  to  laugh  than  to  be  serious. 

When  the  lesson  for  the  day  was  over,  I  sent  the 
boys  home  with  money  to  buy  each  a  pigeon, 
which  they  were  to  try  to  skin  in  their  homes  in 
the  way  I  had  shown,  and  bring  their  handiwork 
on  the  morrow. 

In  due  course  they  came  aboard  again  with 
their  "  specimens  "  :  one  poor  skin  in  rags  and 
with  half  the  plumage  gone,  the  other  not  so 
heavily  handled,  and  showing  some  signs  of  pains- 
taking work.  On  that  day  the  lesson  in  my  cabin 
was  repeated,  and  then  independently  at  home, 
and  the  result  was  that,  on  the  eve  of  starting 
north  to  Kano,  one  boy — Sakari  by  name — ^was 
engaged,  since  he  had  shown  some  intelligence 
and  skill  over  his  skinning  lessons,  and  the  other 
dismissed  as  useless,  as  he  had  developed  no 
aptitude  for  the  work. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  say  here,  while  on 
the  subject,  that  in  spite  of  reports  one  hears  at 
times  of  natives  who  have  become  expert  at  pre- 
paring specimens — doubtless  exceptions — I  would 
advise  no  collector  to  rely  on  local  skill  to  any 
great  extent,  for  I  have  always  found  them  most 
difficult  to  educate,  and  skilful  and  careful  only  up 
to  a  certain  point.  For  my  own  part  I  have  never 
employed  a  native  on  such  work  who,  when  the 
skin  was  separated  from  the  carcass,  I  could  allow 
to  apply  the  coating  of  preservative  and  reset 
the  specimen  in  the  natural,  faultless  repose 
which  is  essential  to  a  finished  skin  required  for 
scientific  purposes.  For  straightforward  skin- 
ning, however,  good  natives  are  procurable,  and 
3 


10  ENGAGING    BOYS— LAGOS 

with  practice  can  save  much  of  the  collector's 
time  by  doing  the  preliminary  work. 

Meantime,  while  hunting  preparations  were 
progressing,  I  had  spent  some  time  on  shore  each 
day  in  the  native  quarters  of  Lagos.  The  port  at 
which  a  traveller  disembarks  in  a  land  which  is 
foreign  always  holds  the  lively  interest  of  novelty, 
if  nothing  more,  and  Lagos  had  much  that  was 
novel.  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  out- 
ward aspect  from  the  lagoon  is  almost  entirely 
European,  Lagos  is,  broadly  speaking,  a  great 
native  city  ;  and  it  is  on  that  account  that  it  is 
so  attractive  to  the  curious  stranger.  The  Euro- 
pean section,  which  runs  chiefly  in  a  line  along  the 
long  shores  of  the  lagoon,  is  as  a  rampart  between 
the  sea  and  the  great  area  of  native  town  which 
lies  hidden  behind  the  solidity  and  imposing 
stature  of  the  commercial  and  domestic  buildings 
of  the  white  man.  And  it  is  behind  those  colonial 
buildings  that  one  must  pass  to  gain  entrance  to 
the  true  city  of  primitive  native  hutments  which 
bears  the  aspect  of  the  historic  antiquity  and  primi- 
tive character  of  the  people  who  inhabit  it.  So 
turning  from  the  main  street  which  runs  along 
the  water-front,  and  walking  up  one  of  the  side- 
streets,  one  finds  oneself  immediately  among 
curious  scenes  and  curious  people  in  narrow 
streets  which  are  lined  with  irregular  closely 
packed  native  huts  on  either  side — huts  of  every 
imaginable  shape,  and  built,  for  the  most  part, 
with  a  most  nondescript  collection  of  materials 
which  owners  appear  to  have  gathered  together 
with  little  or  no  cost  to  their  pockets.  The  walls 
of  the  huts  are  of  mud,  but  the  roofs,  if  they  are 


THE  CHARM  OF  LAGOS  11 

not  thatched,  and  the  little  dog-kennels  of 
bazaars  which  are  in  front  of  almost  every  dwelling, 
are  made  up  with  old  crate-boards,  planks,  cor- 
rugated iron,  pieces  of  tin,  old  sacks,  canvas — 
anything ;  paintless,  untidy  squalor  for  the  most 
part,  and  the  sun-basking  places  of  countless 
lizards  that  come  out  from  behind  the  shady 
cracks. 

Were  the  huts  and  the  streets  deserted  of 
human  life,  Lagos  would  indeed  be  a  dismal  place, 
and  little  short  of  one  huge  rubbish  heap  ;  but  it 
is  entirely  otherwise,  for  the  scene  is  crowded — 
even  overcrowded — with  life  and  colour,  and 
hence  attractive  and  sometimes  very  beautiful, 
and  down  the  hot  dusty  streets,  which  in  many 
instances  are  very  narrow,  and  in  and  out  of  side 
lanes,  one  may  pass  for  hours  and  never  be  clear 
of  the  brilUant  cotton-clad  throng ;  every  indi- 
vidual of  which,  whether  Yuroba,  Egba,  Hausa, 
Arab  or  Eo'oo,  seems  intent  on  selling  or  buying 
something  in  a  veritable  hive  of  trading  and 
industry. 

It  is  an  uncommon  sight,  and  a  wonderfully 
picturesque  one,  to  view  those  busy  streets  of 
native  Lagos — ^their  fullness  of  motion  and  rich, 
almost  Oriental  colouring  of  native  dress,  worn 
as  a  rule  with  all  the  grace  of  perfect  physique ; 
bazaars  bright  with  wares  exposed  for  sale ; 
children  toddling  by  the  doors ;  and  goats  and 
chickens,  at  risk  of  their  lives,  tripping  and 
feeding  among  the  throng.  Time  without  number, 
as  I  passed  curiously  through  those  streets,  my 
eye  was  arrested  by  little  gleams  of  perfect 
colouring  in  a  perfect  natural  native  setting — 


12  ENGAGING    BOYS— LAGOS 

lovely  pictures  without  one  single  act  of  prepara- 
tion or  posture — and  I  confess  I  sighed  and  moved 
on,  regretting  I  was  not  an  artist  with  genius  to 
catch  such  scenes,  and  hold  them  in  all  their 
beauty  and  simplicity,  so  that  I  might  show  them 
also  to  my  fellow-men,  less  fortunate  in  their 
freedom  to  travel. 

Wherefrom  it  may  be  gathered  that  I  much 
enjoyed  my  brief  sojourn  in  Lagos,  where  I 
would  fain  have  stayed  longer,  had  not  my  duties 
called  me  to  hurry  on  to  Kano. 


THE    AUTHOR. 


WS»>-                it-har-"TTM— --fii.-Mihrrft^-                 -^'  -  - 

"i^^Hi ^ .  j/«^>^  .^ ,  -^^wi^m  ^^] 

i^^^^^^m 

'**^'"W||k   \V#s^BiiHB ^^'^^SI^^i^B  '^^HkiBM^^I 

VJKW     dl-     KAN'O    C  riV. 


12] 


CHAPTER  II 

KANO,      NORTHERN      NIGERIA,     THE      COMMERCIAL 
METROPOLIS   OF   THE   WESTERN    SUDAN 

Twice  a  week  a  mixed  passenger  train  runs  from 
Lagos  to  Kano,  which,  despite  its  crude  dis- 
comfort, must  serve  the  traveller  who  wishes  to  go 
north,  for  there  is  no  other  way  for  the  present. 

When  the  time  came  for  me  to  set  out  upon 
that  journey,  to  say  I  was  astonished  at  the  crowds 
of  natives  at  the  station  and  at  the  confusion 
would  be  to  put  it  very  mildly.  Drowning  the 
sound  of  clanking  trucks  and  blasts  of  engine 
whistles  in  the  station,  arose  the  deafening  cries 
of  instruction  and  abuse  of  a  highly  excited, 
hustling  mob  about  to  board  the  train,  after 
bidding  demonstrative  farewells  to  two  or  three 
generations  of  relations  and  friends.  Din  and 
confusion  reigned  supreme ;  there  was  no  calm 
eddy  there,  no  steady  head  or  hand  to  order 
silence  or  orderliness.  One  might  be  forgiven 
if,  for  the  moment,  one  thought,  as  I  did,  that 
I  had  mistaken  my  direction  and  had  entered 
a  native  market-place,  in  which  a  great  sale  was 
going  on  and  the  bidding  eager  and  heated,  in  a 
volcanic  atmosphere  of  excitement. 

Patience    was    necessary,    I    assure    you,    to 

13 


14  KANO,   NORTHERN  NIGERIA 

carry  master  and  boys  and  baggage  through 
the  jostling  of  some  hundreds  of  people,  past  the 
ticket-desks  of  distracted  native  clerks,  who  were 
being  overwhelmed  by  a  fiercely  gesticulating, 
clamouring  mob,  that  know,  by  force  of  primitive 
environment,  only  their  rude  desires  and  nothing 
of  manners.  And  when  the  train  had  finally 
been  boarded  and  the  journey  begun,  I  found 
it  was  necessary  to  keep  hold  on  patience  through- 
out, for  many  stations  on  the  way  held  some- 
thing of  the  same  fearful  din  and  disorder. 

Much  could  be  done  by  strict  measures  on  the 
part  of  the  railway  authorities  to  "  tone  down  " 
and  regulate  such  native  shortcomings,  which 
white  men  would  surely  welcome,  for  it  is  little 
less  than  unchecked  raw  exuberance  that  is 
prevalent  among  them — perfectly  good-natured, 
as  a  rule — ^which  interferes  with  the  quick  and 
systematic  disposition  of  the  service,  and  which 
is  not  in  keeping  with  the  fitness  of  things  in 
modern  travel. 

But  such  circumstances  are  among  the  draw- 
backs which  unprecedented  prosperity  has  brought 
in  its  wake.  Nigeria,  rich  beyond  all  possible 
estimate  in  natural  resources,  has  come,  and  is 
coming,  into  her  own  ;  no  longer  gradually  and 
steadily  as  cautious  and  perhaps  wise  men  might 
wish,  but  by  leaps  and  bounds  in  keeping  with 
the  impatient  spirit  of  the  age.  So  that  laggards 
are  apt  to  be  left  behind,  or  things  which  are 
primitive  become  out  of  date  ;  and  that  is  what 
has  happened  with  the  Nigerian  railway,  which 
was  built,  no  doubt,  and  run  for  the  little  needs 
of  the  colony  as  they  existed  a  few  years  ago, 


NEED   OF  RAILWAYS  15 

but  which  is  not  now  an  adequate  nor  well  regu- 
lated service,  and  fails  sadly  to  fall  in  line  with 
the  astonishing  progress  of  present-day  commerce. 
Hence,  in  part,  the  cause  of  the  congestion  and 
confusion  at  the  stations  which  is  so  prevalent 
to-day. 

Nigeria  urgently  needs  more  railways,  more 
railway  facilities,  throughout  the  width  and 
breadth  of  the  land :  a  land  that  has  few  equals 
in  untouched  natural  wealth ;  a  land  of  immense 
possibilities^  provided  wise  laws  conserve  its  native 
labour  and  cease  to  over- educate  and  over-wean 
it,  and  bring  it  back  to  the  natural  conditions 
from  which  it  has  been  swept  in  a  whirlwind  of 
haste  to  clutch  Prosperity  and  let  everything  else 
go  by  the  board.  Meantime  it  is  bottled  up  in 
its  vast  interior  for  lack  of  outlets,  while  it  is 
struggling  like  a  thing  unborn  to  break  loose 
from  bondage. 

It  is  only  a  very  little  of  the  awakening,  of  the 
struggling,  which  one  sees  at  almost  every  station 
"  up  the  line,"  but  every  sign,  little  or  great,  is  a 
sure  forecast  of  a  dawning  and,  perhaps,  wonder- 
ful new  era  in  West  Africa. 

The  three  days*  wearisome  journey  to  Kano 
need  not  be  dwelt  on  at  length.  Throughout  it 
was  through  a  country  rich  in  forest  and  bush, 
with  no  great  change  in  geographical  aspect  or  in 
altitude.  The  change  in  appearance  begins  in  the 
Kano  region,  at  the  end  of  the  railway,  where  the 
sub-deserts  of  the  north  come  down  in  places  to 
the  fringe  of  the  bushland  and  grade  one  into  the 
other.  The  elevation  of  Kano  is  1,700  ft.,  and 
this  comparatively  small  change  in  altitude  over 


16  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

the  long  distance  from  the  coast  to  Kano — a 
distance  of  704  miles — takes  place  gradually,  so 
that  the  country,  with  small  exceptions,  appears 
flat  throughout.  There  are  great  dense  belts  of 
oil  palms  and  coco-nut  palms  in  from  the  coast, 
which  in  time,  as  you  proceed  up-country,  give 
place  to  more  varied  tropical  forests  of  tall 
stately  trees  growing  from  jungle  undergrowth  ; 
while  further  on  again,  toward  the  north,  the 
growth  is  less  prolific,  and  there  is  much  acacia 
bush,  which  is  open  or  dense  in  patches,  and  of  no 
imposing  height. 

To  step  from  the  train  at  Kano  and  shake  one- 
self free  from  the  discomforting  heat  and  dust  of 
the  carriage  and  know  that  the  journey  was  at  an 
end  was  a  cause  for  rejoicing  with  me.  Civilisa- 
tion now  lay  behind  ;  here  would  I  gather  together 
my  caravan  of  camels  and  natives  and  set  out  on 
the  open  road  with  all  the  freedom  of  a  nomad. 

And  as  a  starting-off  point,  I  learned,  on  close 
acquaintance,  that  Kano  was  ideal,  for  it  proved 
to  be  a  place  of  the  frontiers  and  of  the  outdoors 
that  harboured  a  host  of  wayfarers  that  passed  to 
and  fro  from  the  great  and  historical  market- 
centre  of  the  north. 

The  ancient  city  of  Kano  is  situated  on  an  ex- 
tensive plain  of  cleared  and  cultivated  bushland, 
which  is  not  completely  bare  and  waste  nor  tree- 
less, but  which,  nevertheless,  bears  a  distinctive 
change  from  the  country  further  south,  and  has 
much  of  the  appearance  of  sub-desert  in  the  dry 
season,  for  it  holds  the  palest  of  colouring — that 
true  buff  shadeless  neutral  tint  common  to  desert 
lands  which  oceans  of  wind-lain  sand  and  ranges 


AT  THE   END   OF  THE   LINE  17 

of  dry  prairie  grass  give  to  a  sun-parched,  rain- 
thirsty  country.  But  only  in  colour  and  sand- 
winds  of  the  Harmattan  has  it  great  resemblance 
to  desert,  for,  beside  the  scattered  trees  and  bush, 
the  level  stretches  on  closer  inspection  are  found 
to  be  largely  lands  that  have  been  cultivated 
during  the  short  rainy  season  and  are  now  waste- 
grown  over  a  very  sandy  soil,  which  is  dry  and 
cracked  and  powdered  to  fine  dustiness  on  the 
surface.  One  of  the  common  and  best-known 
ground  plants  amongst  the  dead  vegetation  on 
the  sandy  soil  is  that  named  "  Tafasa  "  by  the 
Hausa  people  {Sesbania  sp,  Leguminosce).  It  is  a 
straw-yellow,  long-stalked  underbrush,  with  long 
thin  bean-pods,  and  known  to  everyone  about 
Kano,  for  it  grows  about  2  ft.  high  in  considerable 
extent,  and  crackles  noisily  in  brittle  dryness  as 
one  brushes  against  it  in  passing.  Another  well- 
known  plant  there,  and  everywhere  in  the  bush- 
land,  is  that  which  the  natives  call  "  Karengia  " 
(Pennisetum  Cenchroides  Rich.),  and  which  is  a 
very  annoying  burr-grass  that  adheres  to  any  part 
of  one's  clothing,  and  which  is  a  terrible  pest  to 
the  hunter. 

It  was  the  season  of  the  Harmattan  when  I 
reached  Kano,  for  it  was  the  month  of  December, 
and  the  driving  winds  from  the  Sahara  had  al- 
ready set  in.  The  Harmattan  (often  designated 
"  Hazo  "  by  Hausa  natives,  which  means  mist) 
is  a  season  of  hot,  dry,  dust-filled  winds  that  blow 
from  the  desert  interior  steadily  day  after  day, 
but  seldom  with  the  abandoned  fierceness  of  a 
sandstorm.  At  that  period  the  early  mornings  are 
cool  even  to  coldness,  and  fresh  and  vigorous 


18  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

with  the  stirring  of  strong  wind,  which  bears 
down  with  the  coming  of  day,  and  brings  with  it 
a  fine  mist-hke  haze  which  envelops  the  whole 
country.  But  the  haze  is  not  an  atmosphere  of 
laden  dampness,  such  as  is  familiar  to  England  ; 
quite  the  contrary,  for  it  is  dry  with  the  intensity 
of  a  white  heat,  and  mist-like  only  because  the 
wind  is  so  full  of  fine  sand  particles  from  the 
tinder-dry  desert  in  the  north,  which  it  carries  and 
lays  in  a  carpet  of  fine  penetrating  dust  wherever 
it  passes. 

The  dryness  in  the  land  at  this  season  is  un- 
believable if  you  have  not  experienced  it ;  mois- 
ture is  dried  up  as  if  the  flame  of  a  furnace  was 
licking  at  it ;  ink,  for  instance,  dries  as  fast 
as  each  letter  of  the  alphabet  is  penned,  and 
the  clogging  pen-nib  is  almost  unmanageable  : 
writing-paper,  books — even  the  stiff  book  covers 
— everything  of  the  kind  curls  up  and  becomes 
unsightly ;  boots  that  fitted  with  comfort  in 
England  shrink  to  such  an  extent  that  they  are 
useless  ;  nothing  escapes,  not  even  one's  person, 
lips  crack,  and  nostrils  and  eyes  sting  ;  and  alto- 
gether one  has  days  of  intense  personal  discom- 
fort. Moreover,  the  fine  almost  invisible  sand- 
dust  searches  into  everything,  and  very  soon  both 
my  watches  were  affected ;  next  my  camera 
shutter  went  wrong,  and  later  on  a  rifle  and  gun. 
These  latter  were  the  greatest  mishaps  to  befall 
me  during  Harmattan,  and  they  were  serious 
enough  at  the  onset  of  an  expedition. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  at  Kano  there  is  al- 
ready something  of  sand  and  bleakness,  and,  to  a 
considerable  degree,  it  is  therefore  relative  to  the 


THE  HARMATTAN   SEASON  19 

boundless  Sahara  to  the  north,  while  the  advent 
of  the  Harmattan  and  driving  sands  bring  to  one 
the  very  atmosphere  of  the  great  lone  wastes  of 
the  hinterland.  And  in  keeping  with  such  im- 
pressions, and  enhancing  them,  stands  the  strange, 
and  ancient,  and  powerful  city  of  Kano,  which  in 
its  unique  earth-built  aspect  has  all  the  character 
of  a  city  of  the  mystical  northern  desert  and  little 
or  none  of  the  character  one  is  accustomed  to  see 
in  Nigeria.  Perhaps,  most  of  all,  Kano  impressed 
me  with  its  atmosphere  of  age  :  the  gigantic 
ramparts  around  it,  and  many  of  the  quaint  mud 
dwellings  were  obviously  time-worn,  in  that 
inimitable  manner  of  things  that  are  unmistak- 
ably ancient,  and  carry  about  them  for  ever  the 
rudiments  of  the  craftsmanship  of  strange  races 
that  have  passed  and  gone  for  all  time. 

And  though  we  may  know  from  hearsay  that 
great  powers  in  race  and  religion  have  lived  within 
the  walls  of  Kano  to  fight  and  struggle  for  power 
and  existence  through  ages  of  History — as  is  the 
destiny  of  kingdoms — it  is  difficult  to  realise  how 
slowly  time  has  advanced  in  this  secluded  back- 
eddy,  and  how  very  close  the  past  is  to  the 
present,  until  you  have  walked  within  the  ancient 
walls  and  fallen  under  the  spell  of  the  old-world 
character  of  the  people,  and  their  dwellings,  and 
their  customs. 

Undoubtedly  this  atmosphere  of  the  Past  which 
hangs  so  closely  about  Kano  remains  there  be- 
cause the  town  so  long  lay  out  of  the  way  of  the 
ever-hurrying  feet  of  that  advancing,  engulfing 
"  civilisation  "  of  our  age  which  is  the  ruling 
"  God  "  of  the  white  man  in  his  own  land,  where- 


20  KANO,    NORTHERN   NIGERIA 

so  ever  that  be,  or  in  any  other  land  that  he  has 
fallen  heir  to  through  the  honourable,  or  mayhap 
— be  it  whispered — dishonourable  enterprise  of  a 
bygone  grandparent. 

It  was  as  late  as  1902  that  the  white  man  came 
before  the  gates  of  Kano,  demanding  admittance, 
and  since  the  aggressors  were  the  great  "  Bature," 
and  had  many  rifles  (a  few  arms  collectively  are 
invariably  construed  as  many  by  timid,  untaught 
natives),  the  Hausa  inhabitants,  who  were  at  dis- 
cord with  the  Fulani,  who  were  their  masters  at 
the  time,  and  deserted  by  the  cowardly  Emir 
Alieu,  forthwith  bowed  before  Destiny  with  true 
Negro  fatalism,  and  accepted  British  rule  without 
serious  dispute,  and  without  making  any  kind  of 
stout-hearted  defence  against  the  undermanned 
punitive  expedition  that  was  sent  out  at  the  time  ; 
a  fact  to  their  discredit,  for  they  were  in  their 
thousands. 

It  would  appear,  from  records,  that  the  pact 
between  conqueror  and  vanquished  was  a  friendly 
one,  and  of  such  wisdom  that  the  change  of  rule 
was  not  a  drastic  one  and  brought  no  tyranny  ; 
in  fact,  the  hands  of  the  Crown's  Trustees  were 
laid  so  lightly  upon  the  people  in  directing  their 
administration,  that  they  (the  natives)  lost  none 
of  their  ancient  characteristics  or  pride  of  race  at 
the  time  of  small  beginnings  of  acquaintance  with 
Europeans  ;  so  that  almost  up  to  the  present 
day  Kano  remained  to  all  intents  and  purposes 
completely  native  and  original,  and  a  great  and 
powerful  centre  of  the  Hausa  people  and  of 
Mohammedanism.  It  is  at  the  present  time  that 
the   careless    breath    of   civilisation    has    swept 


THE  COMING  OF  THE  WHITE  MAN       21 

inevitably — for  it  is  useless  to  expect  to  gainsay 
Destiny — in  from  the  South,  and  has  cast  a  blight 
upon  the  simplicitj'^  of  the  natives,  with  unnatural 
consequences  to  their  frail  character. 

In  1911  the  Nigeria  railway  was  laid  down  to 
Kano.  In  1914 — about  six  years  ago — ^there  was 
less  than  a  score  of  Europeans  within  the  British 
segregation  about  a  mile  east  of  the  Hausa  City, 
and  at  the  time  of  my  journey,  early  in  1920,  some- 
where about  six  score ;  the  former  a  barely  percep- 
tible number  amongst  the  vast  native  population  ; 
the  latter  just  enough  to  have  started  the  swing 
of  the  pendulum  of  commerce  and  speculation 
which  already  promises  to  change  a  fine  old  world 
that  is  rare  to  a  new  world  that  will  grow  common- 
place. I  treasure  old  things,  as  I  fancy  we  all  do, 
and  therefore  cannot  refrain  from  regret  when  I 
see  something  that  is  dear  totter  on  the  brink  of 
destruction — so  often  it  cannot  be  saved  by 
reason  of  circumstances  or  environment,  and  it 
goes  out  for  ever,  for  the  passing  of  the  Old  is  just 
as  inevitable  as  the  coming  of  the  New  beneath  the 
propelling  will  of  Destiny. 

The  population  of  Kano  is  a  fluctuating  one,  on 
account  of  the  nomadic  propensities  of  many  of 
the  people,  and  I  think  I  am  right  in  saying  that 
there  are  on  that  account  no  exact  statistics  con- 
cerning numbers.  There  is  said  to  be  an  average 
population  of  about  80,000  inhabitants  in  Kano, 
which  dwindles  to  about  60,000  in  the  "  off 
season,"  and  rises  to  about  100,000  in  the  height 
of  the  trading  season,  when  ground-nuts  are 
marketed. 

The  province  of  Kano,  of  which  the  City  of 


22  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

Kano  is  capital,  has  a  population  of  2,871,236,^ 
which  is  a  much  greater  number  than  that  con- 
tained within  any  other  province  in  Nigeria,  its 
nearest  competitor  having  barely  half  that  total. 

Those  few  figures  may  serve  to  proportion  the 
extent  of  the  importance  of  Kano ;  but  let  me 
lay  statistics  aside  henceforth,  for  I  would  fain 
wander  back  in  random  fashion  within  the  old 
gaunt  walls  of  the  city  and  examine  the  quaintness 
and  the  rudeness  wherever  dust-lain  mysterious 
lanes  may  lead  me. 

Within  the  walls  of  Kano  the  city  is  composed 
of  thousands  of  diminutive  hutments,  which 
crouch  low  and  are  huddled  together  as  if  to  gain 
each  from  the  other  strength,  and  companionship, 
and  protection,  which  is  indeed  the  intention  in  a 
land  which  suffers  from  the  sting  of  driving, 
biting  sandstorms,  and  knew  in  the  Past  the 
swoop  of  attacking  enemy. 

The  huts,  and  the  enclosure  walls  about  them, 
are  built  with  reddish  clay-soil  taken  from  pits  in 
the  neighbourhood,  and,  with  the  addition  of 
water  and  plant  fibres,  kneaded  into  a  plaster 
which,  after  it  has  been  applied,  sets  very  hard. 
Dwellings  so  built  are  cool  and  weather-worthy 
for  the  greater  part  of  the  year,  but  at  the  time  of 
the  Rains  some  damage  is  usually  wrought  by 
the  heavy  wash  of  water,  and  repairs  are  necessary 
thereafter. 

In  appearance  the  dwellings  are  stoutly  built 
at  the  hands  of  patient,  careful  labour  (for  the 
natives  are  not  a  little  skilled  in  their  work),  and, 
though  they  have  seldom  ornament  of  any  kind, 

^  Nigeria  handbook 


IN   KANO  CITY  28 

their  simple  lines  and  odd  and  primitive  planning 
have  an  attraction,  and  a  novelty  that  is  peculiar, 
apparently,  to  the  walled-towns  on  the  northern 
borders  of  negro-land. 

Kano,  like  most  native  towns,  has  grown  upon 
no  preconceived  lines,  with  the  result  that  it  is 
to-day  a  happy-go-lucky  jumble  of  dwellings  that 
in  many  cases  appear  to  just  save  themselves 
from  complete  imprisonment  by  the  number  of 
lanes  that  provide,  by  the  genius  of  necessity,  a 
way  of  escape  to  the  encompassed  dwellers. 
Throughout  the  whole  city  runs  an  amazing  net- 
work of  street-lanes,  zigzagging  and  turning  and 
twisting  in  every  conceivable  direction  and  holding 
to  no  true  course  for  any  appreciable  distance, 
which  is  the  outcome  of  the  numerous  den-builders 
having  built  their  little  dwellings  wherever  an 
open  space  or  a  corner  was  available,  without 
preconceived  attempt  to  form  the  whole  in  any 
kind  of  symmetrical  plan. 

From  the  outside  the  openings  in  the  severe 
lane  walls — ^which  are  8  to  10  ft.  high — do  not 
invite  a  stranger  to  enter  freely  into  the  privacy 
of  these  native  dwellings,  but,  not  wishing  to 
miss  anything,  I  one  day  plucked  up  courage  and 
asked  of  an  aged  woman,  who  was  squatted  on 
the  ground  at  a  doorway  in  a  lane,  if  she  would 
show  me  the  interior  of  her  house  ? 

But  before  making  my  request  I  tactfully  gave 
her  the  long  formula  of  Hausa  greeting  : 

Self  : — Sanu  sanu  !     (good  day  !) 

Aged  woman  : — Sanu  kaddai !     (thank  you  !) 

Selj : — Sanu  da  aiki !   (blessings  in  your  work  I) 


24  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

Aged  woman  ;— Sanu  kaddai !     (thank  you  !) 
Self  : — Enna  lafia  ?     (how  are  you  ?) 
Aged  woman  : — ^Lafia  lau  !     (very  well !) 
Self  : — Enna  gajia  ?     (how  is  weariness  ?) 
Aged  woman  : — Babu   gajia  !     (none  !) 
Self  : — Enna  gidda  ?     (how  is  your  house  ?) 
Aged  woman  : — ^I^afia  lau  !     (very  well !) 
Self  ;— MadiUa  !*     (thank  God  !) 
Aged  woman  : — MadiUa  !     (thank  God  !) 

which  formula  the  Hausa  native  dearly  loves  to 
be  greeted  with,  since  it  is  the  habitual  form  of 
friendly  salutation ;  and  it  now  brought  me 
good-natured  bidding  to  enter. 

Across  the  door-opening  in  the  wall  I  stepped 
from  the  lane  into  the  yard  or  compound — a 
small  open  space  with  high  walls  on  all  sides — 
which  was  clean,  though  earthen  and  dusty,  and 
contained  a  few  naked  infants  that  played  about 
the  hut  doors  in  company  with  a  pair  of  young 
goats  of  an  age  to  be  nursed  and  nourished  at 
home,  while  a  few  bantam-sized  African  fowls 
scratched  for  pickings  where  wooden  mortar 
stools  and  pestle  poles  on  the  ground  told  that 
the  industrious  women  of  the  house  had  lately 
been  crushing  grain  for  the  forenoon  meal.  There 
was  not,  contrary  to  the  usual  custom,  any  tree  or 
bush  preserved  within  the  narrow  limits  of  the 
yard  for  sun- shelter. 

The  yard  I  had  entered  contained  two  huts 
built  of  the  same  clay-soil  material  as  the  outside 
walls,  and,  bending  almost  double,  I  entered  the 
low  dark  doorless  opening  which  gave  admittance 

*  Sometimes  Madala ! 


]VIUD-BUILT   DWELLINGS  25 

to  the  home  of  the  old  woman,  and  stood  then  in 
dim  Hght  in  a  tiny  den  which  had  only  a  few  feet 
of  space  altogether.  Indeed,  such  dwellings  con- 
tain area  of  so  little  extent  that  if  a  long  wood- 
framed  couch  is  placed  therein,  or  a  grass  mat  for 
reclining  upon  is  laid  upon  the  floor,  one  full  side 
of  the  room  is  taken  up.  No  window  lit  the  in- 
terior— ^though  there  are  sometimes  one  or  two 
narrow  loopholes  near  the  ceiling  in  huts  of  this 
type — and  but  a  dim  light  filtered  indoors  from 
the  sun-shadow  that  fell  athwart  the  low  doorless 
opening ;  the  hard-baked  floor  was  of  the  same 
red  clay-soil  as  the  rest  of  the  dwelling  and  of  the 
colour  of  the  ground  outside  ;  the  flat  ceiling — 
which  showed  the  ant-proof  dum  palm  beams  and 
the  spans  of  grass  matting  between,  which  carried 
the  weight  of  earth  that  composed  the  roof  over- 
head— was  densely  hung  with  cobwebs  and  black 
with  the  wood-smoke  from  years  of  night-fires  and 
cook-fires,  which  had  also  dimmed  the  rough  red 
walls.  There  was  no  furniture  in  the  hut,  nothing 
that  had  the  purpose  of  an  ornament,  for  though 
the  Hausa  people  are  excessively  fond  of  ornament 
on  their  persons,  strangely  enough  no  such  taste 
is  reproduced  in  their  dwellings.  Upon  the  floor 
lay  a  clean  grass  mat,  whereon  the  inhabitants  are 
wont  to  crouch  around  the  food-bowl  at  meal-time, 
or  individuals  recline  in  sleep  in  the  heat  of  the 
height  of  the  day  ;  a  few  calabash  drinking- 
bowls  and  bowls  for  drawing  well-water  hung  from 
the  ceiling  and  from  the  wall,  where  also  a  well- 
used  bow  and  a  buck-skin  sheath  of  arrows  hung 
from  a  peg. 

From  this  room  a  short  dark  passage  led  to  the 
4 


26  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

other  hut,  which  was  of  exactly  the  same  character 
and  aspect  as  the  first,  except  that  therein  two 
comely  women,  in  bright  cotton  garb,  had  taken 
refuge  in  shyness  of  the  white  stranger — ^wives,  no 
doubt,  of  the  proprietor,  who  was  not  for  the  mo- 
ment at  home.  A  few  Hausa  words  to  them  in 
friendliness  and  a  coin  to  the  old  woman,  and  I 
passed  outside  into  the  daylight  again  and  on  my 
way,  followed  by  the  grateful  "  Na  gode,  na  gode  ! 
(thank  you,  thank  you  !)  of  the  old  woman,  who 
was  much  flattered  over  the  advent  of  a  white  man 
to  her  humble  *'gidda  "  (abode). 

Therein  I  have  described  one  native  home  in 
Kano,  and  in  describing  one  have  portrayed  the 
type,  for,  except  in  minor  details,  they  are  all  very 
similar.  They  are,  in  fact,  when  all  is  said  and 
done,  but  the  simple  primitive  shelters  of  an  out- 
door people  of  an  old  world,  who  are  content  for 
the  most  part  to  make  shift,  somewhat  in  gipsy 
fashion,  with  the  rude  necessities  of  life  like  unto 
the  wild  things  about  them. 

Of  course  there  are,  in  addition  to  the  mass  of 
dwellings,  the  Mohammedan  mosque,  and  Sultan's 
Palace,  and  market-stalls,  which Ihave  importance 
and  peculiarities  of  their  own  and  complete  the 
city  as  a  whole  ;  but  the  great  novelty  of  the  place 
lies  along  the  lanes  and  about  the  mud  huts  of  the 
crowded  populace,  and  upon  the  rampart  wails 
that  stand  stalwart  guards  through  the  ages. 

In  the  Past  it  would  appear  the  natives  of  Kano 
lived  almost  altogether  within  the  ramparts  of  the 
city,  as  was  the  defensive  custom  of  rival  centres 
throughout  the  territory  ;  for  tribal  wars  were 
continual  in  those  days,  one  group  fighting  an- 


THE  GREAT  WALLS  OF  KANO     27 

other,  one  city  besieging  another  to  such  an  extent 
that  safety  was  only  to  be  found  behind  stout 
walls  and  lines  of  archers,  while,  in  times  of 
disturbance,  the  bush  outside  remained  a  deserted 
no-man's-land. 

Thus  to  withstand  siege  Kano  had  more  than 
its  crowded  streets  of  dwellings  within  the  walls 
that  enclosed  an  area  of  TJ  square  miles  ;  there 
was  open  ground  where  goats  and  cattle  and 
camels  could  be  herded  and  fed  for  a  time  when 
threat  of  attack  should  drive  them  in  from  the 
outside ;  there  were  ponds  and  pits  of  water, 
even  in  the  dry  season,  where  beasts  could  be 
watered,  and  deep  wells  to  supply  the  people. 
So  that  with  their  herds  of  animals  to  slaughter 
for  meat,  and  secreted  grain  stores,  and  abundant 
water,  the  inhabitants  were  in  a  strong  position  to 
withstand  siege  in  the  good  old  days  of  high 
adventure — days  not  long  removed  so  far  as  they 
are  concerned. 

Within  the  walls,  also,  are  the  twin  hills  Goron 
Dutse  and  Dalla,  outstanding  though  not  massive 
in  area,  but  most  notable  because  they  are  the 
only  hills  in  view  on  any  side  over  the  distance  of 
cleared  land  and  bushland  of  the  surrounding 
country,  so  that  they  are  like  sentinel  posts  and 
fortresses  to  outside  eyes. 

Lastly,  and  most  striking  feature  of  all  in  this 
place  of  strange  reflection  of  ancient  customs, 
there  are  the  great  ramparts  which  completely 
surround  the  city.  They  are  the  very  embodi- 
ment of  strength,  towering  above  all  else — of  great 
width  and  height,  and  one  solid  mass  of  welded 
clay-soil.   Indeed,  the  whole  enclosure  is  so  colossal 


28  KANO,    NORTHERN   NIGERIA 

that  one  cannot  but  be  filled  with  amazement  when 
endeavouring  to  conceive  an  imaginary  estimate 
of  the  labour  and  enthusiasm  that  the  masters 
and  their  subjects  and  their  slaves  must  have  put 
into  the  work.  At  some  time  or  other  one  can 
easily  imagine  that  countless  thousands  of  naked 
natives  swarmed  upon  those  walls,  intent  on  one 
great  purpose,  like  so  many  droves  of  tireless 
working  ants.  The  walls  are  40  ft.  wide  at  the 
base,  and  rise,  tapering  to  4  to  6  ft.  width  at  the 
top,  to  a  height  of  30  ft.  and  more.  The  parapet 
is  punctuated  with  regular  openings  to  accommo- 
date the  drawn  bows  of  archers  when  kneeling  on 
the  ledge  or  pathway  which  is  on  the  inside  of  the 
top  of  the  wall.  The  great  wall  which  encircles 
the  city  is  no  less  than  11  miles  around  its  circum- 
ference, while  there  are  thirteen  tunnel-like  gloomy 
entrances,  through  the  great  width  at  the  base,  on 
main  roadways  that  diverge  from  the  city,  so  that 
exit  or  entrance  can  be  made  from  any  side.  In 
the  side  walls  of  the  tunnel  entrances  there  are 
room-like  cavities  excavated  which  apparently 
accommodated  the  guard  in  time  of  war. 

The  hour  to  enter  Kano  by  one  of  these  gates  is 
in  the  cool  of  the  late  afternoon,  for  at  that  time 
you  will  find  that  the  somnolence  which  the 
excessive  heat  of  noonday  lays  upon  the  easy- 
going inhabitants  has  lifted  and  that  there  is  a 
great  stir  of  joyous  life  about  the  city.  The 
earth  streets  and  lanes  are  filled  with  natives  bent 
on  one  occupation  or  another,  for  Kano  is  at  heart 
a  regular  hive  of  industry — "  the  great  emporium 
of  Central  Africa,"  as  Dr.  Barth  described  it  on  his 
travels  in  1850.   It  is  the  principal  hour  in  the 


A    STREET-LANE    IX    KAXO. 


AN   ENTRANCE    IN   THE    MUD   "WALLS    OP    KANO. 


88] 


KANO  MARKET  29 

market-place,  and  women  and  men  pass  thereto 
with  baskets  of  wares  carried  with  easy  grace 
upon  their  heads;  laden  donkeys,  dun-coloured 
or  grey,  pass  marketwards  too  ;  and  long-gaited 
camels,  and  sometimes  lean-ribbed,  big-boned 
oxen,  all  converging  into  Kano  in  the  one 
direction,  whence  issues  the  hum  of  many 
voices  telling  where  a  multitude  has  already 
gathered. 

The  market  is  comprised  of  long  streets  of  low, 
roofed-in  open  stalls,  wherein  the  wares  are  ex- 
posed upon  the  ground  within  an  allotted  space, 
while  the  gown-clad  Hausa  merchants  kneel 
behind  them  with  becoming  solemnity  and  do 
business.  You  may  see  upon  some  stalls  British 
cotton,  and  British  ironmongery,  and  British 
cigarettes  which  have  been  imported,  and  a  few 
other  things  ;  but  for  the  most  part  the  wares  are 
native,  and  you  can  single  out  baskets  of  raw 
cotton,  bobbins  of  home-spun  thread,  and  stout 
Kano  Cloth — which  is  renowned  in  Nigeria — the 
weaving  and  dyeing  of  which  is  a  large  industry. 
Also  the  sale  of  hides,  and  leather-work,  and 
basket-work,  and  pottery  are  local  industries  of 
importance  that  bring  wares  to  the  market ; 
while  tailors  and  blacksmiths  flourish  at  their 
trades.  There  are  food -stalls,  where  such  staple 
foods  as  millet,  and  guinea  com,  and  maize,  and 
beans  (whole  or  ground  to  flour)  are  exposed  for 
sale  in  calabash  bowls  or  grass-woven  baskets ; 
and  tomatoes,  onions,  yams,  sugar-canes,  and  the 
pepper  and  plant-leaves  that  go  to  make  up  the 
local  pottage  condiments.  The  meat  market  is 
set  apart,  which  is  wise,  for  it  is  fly-ridden  and 


30  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

odoriferous,  and  beef  and  mutton  and  choice  parts 
of  offal  (of  which  natives  are  particularly  fond) 
are  there  exposed  for  sale. 

The  merchants  of  the  stalls  are  principally  of 
the  Hausa  race,  and  there  are  a  few  Arabs.  But 
in  the  cattle-market,  which  is  also  on  one  side, 
the  natives  are  often  Fulani  and  Beri-Beri,  who 
have  brought  in  cattle,  sheep,  goats,  and  camels 
from  distant  bush  where  their  herds  roam. 

There  are  some  horses  for  sale  in  the  cattle- 
market  ;  high-mettled,  Arab-like  beasts  that  are 
often  very  attractive,  but  which,  very  unfortun- 
ately, are  almost  invariably  gone  at  the  houghs 
through  the  stupid  native  habit  of  throwing  a 
galloping  horse  suddenly  back  on  its  hindquarters 
on  hard  ground  to  make  a  dramatic  halt  before  an 
audience  or  a  king's  house,  by  means  of  pressure 
on  the  locally-made  cruel  bit-iron  which  projects 
on  to  the  roof  of  the  mouth. 

It  may  be  gathered  at  this  stage  that  the  local 
market  of  Kano  is  well  equipped  to  supply  the 
wants  of  the  primitive  people.  Moreover,  the 
whole  interchange  of  trading  is  so  extensive,  that 
there  is  a  very  wholesome  buying  and  selling 
within  its  own  circle  which  employs  almost 
everyone  and  makes  the  city  doubly  self-support- 
ing and  self-sufficient. 

This  market  within  the  old  city,  in  its  entirety, 
is  the  everyday  mart  of  the  inhabitants  and  does 
not  greatly  concern  the  white  traders,  who  buy, 
at  their  own  warehouses  in  the  European  segrega- 
tion outside  the  walls,  their  stacks  of  hides  and 
tons  of  ground-nuts  and  beans,  which  are  the  rich 
exports  from  the  place.     There  is  also  some  Euro- 


AT  THE  CLOSE   OF  THE  DAY  31 

pean  trade  in  cattle  and  sheep,  which  are  railed 
for  the  consumption  of  people  at "  down  country  " 
stations  and  on  "  the  Coast." 

But  it  is  now  time  to  pass  on  from  the  market- 
place and  return  to  quarters,  though  the  loitering 
crowd  that  presses  about  the  stalls  is  so  dense  that 
it  is  difficult  to  pass  through  it,  and  the  din  of 
the  eager  voices  is  deafening.  However,  once 
clear  of  the  congestion  and  noise,  it  is  very  pleasant 
walking  or  riding  slowly  home  under  the  spell  of 
a  closing  day.  Hundreds  of  natives  are  still  on 
the  dusty  roads,  arriving  joyfully  at  the  journey's 
end  with  burdened  animals,  from  distant  parts,  or 
coming  from  the  fields  or  villages  near-by  when  the 
work  of  the  day  is  finished ;  all  gladly  and  con- 
tentedly returning  home,  or  coming  to  a  haven  of 
rest,  while  the  sound  of  pounding  pestle-poles  in 
their  mortar  stools  resounds  methodically  in  the 
still  air  to  declare  to  all  ears  that  industrious 
housewives  are  preparing  the  evening  meal. 

You  may  hear  also,  about  this  time,  the  mono- 
tonous tom-tom  of  small  drums  arising  from  the 
direction  of  a  group  of  hutments,  and  the  loud 
voice  of  a  functionary  raised  in  peculiar  declara- 
tion to  call  forth  neighbours ;  from  which  it  may 
be  understood  that  there  is  gaiety  afoot  in  some 
quarter  where  a  wedding-dance  is  starting.  Such 
sounds  on  the  evening  air  are  very  pleasant,  as 
are  all  sounds  close  to  nature  when  they  are 
explanatory  of  familiar  living  things  and  joy  of 
life  to  anyone  who  is  overtaxed  with  the  silence 
of  the  lone  places,  as  are  many  men  of  the  caravans 
and  of  the  bush  who  drift  into  Kano  from  afar. 

Passing  through  a  shadowed  gateway,  named 


32  KANO,    NORTHERN    NIGERIA 

"  Nassarawa,"  in  the  eastern  wall,  you  may  leave 
the  strange  old  city  behind  in  the  dusk  and  take 
the  straight  road  to  the  white  man's  town  while 
snow-white  flocks  of  Cattle  Egrets  fly  gracefully 
and  softly  across  the  eve-lit  sky  to  their  night 
grounds,  and  satiated  vultures  and  kites  clamber 
heavily  to  their  roosting-perches  on  gnarled  old 
solitary  trees  to  gather  on  each  one  in  colonies. 


CHAPTER  III 

HAUSA,  CURRENCY,  CAMELS,  TRAVELLING 

At  Kano  I  picked  up  two  more  natives  to  accom- 
pany me  on  my  journey,  a  Hausa  youth  named 
Mona  and  a  half-caste  named  Outa,  while  the  inter- 
views with  applicants  were  not  without  amuse- 
ment, since  conversation  was  carried  on  in  my 
somewhat  amateur  Hausa,  with  John  privileged 
to  look  on,  and  give  his  comical  but  shrewd 
opinion  of  the  character  of  his  probable  fellow- 
travellers — ^and  he  had  his  strong  likes  and  dis- 
likes, though  he  judged  his  subjects  solely  by  eye, 
for  he  could  not  speak  Hausa,  as  is  the  case  with 
many  natives  of  other  tribes,  and  in  particular 
with  coast  boys. 

Languages  are  very  numerous  in  Africa,  and  to 
know  them  all  would  be  a  great  task,  but  every 
European  on  the  West  Coast  knows  and  makes 
use  of  the  amusing  native  patois  termed  "  Pigeon 
English,"  which  is  the  crude  English  that  natives 
learn  to  speak  who  come  much  in  contact  with 
white  men.  And  when  one  begins  to  form 
sentences  in  Hausa,  and  troubles  to  translate 
them  literally  into  English,  it  is  amusing  what 
peculiar  phrasing  is  arrived  at,  and  how  similar 
it  is  to  the  patois  of  the  natives.     Thus  here  are 

33 


34  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

some  literal  translations  of  some  of  the  Hausa 
sentences  I  used  : 

Interrogating  native  hunter. 

"  You,  you  make  king  of  hunting  in  your 
town  ?  " 

"  I  make  journey,  I  reach  Air,  after  so  I  return 
within  Kano  when  my  work  I  finish.  You  agree 
you  come  far  together  with  me  ?  " 

"  Money  how  much  you  wish  you  do  work 
with  me  moon  one  one  ?  " 

"  You  agree  you  do  month  ten  (with  me)  ?  " 

Consulting  a  chief  for  information  of  local  hunting- 
ground  and  local  hunter. 

"  I  want  I  may  collect  birds  and  animals  of 
bush." 

"  I  want  I  may  flay  them  and  I  look  inside 
of  them." 

"  I  wizard  am.  I  carry  them  and  I  show  them 
to  white  men  wizards  in  land  (of)  Europe." 

"  Not  I  wish  I  make  journey  quick  because  I 
want  I  catch  them  all." 

''  I  want  I  may  make  hunting  where  grass  it 
makes  tall." 

"  I  want  I  may  make  hunting  where  rivers 
they  make  many  :   a  place  of  lake  and  marsh." 

"  You  are  able  you  give  me  a  hunter,  he  come 
along  with  me  :  he  point  out  to  me  a  bush  good  ?  " 

Translation    of  Hausa    speech    to    natives    when 
camping  and  hunting. 

"  We  shall  alight  here." 

"  Perhaps  we  sit  here  days  ten  and  four." 


QUAINT  LANGUAGE  35 

(Or  in  opposite  case) :  "  We  shall  sit  here 
little  little,  not  we  shall  delay  place  this.  I  will 
go  I  make  hunting  at  (this)  night.  You  it  is 
necessary  you  sit ;  you  look  (my)  camp.  Do 
not  you  sleep." 

"  I  will  take  (my)  gun,  I  will  go,  I  will  make  of 
hunting  now." 

"  You  bring  trap  of  iron." 

"  We  will  sit  here,  we  will  watch  in  silence." 

"  Do  not  you  make  (of)  moving." 

"  Beast  that  it  is  with  a  bad  wound,  we  will 
follow  it." 

The  natives  secured  at  Kano  completed  my 
personnel  for  hunting — Sakari  and  Mona  being 
available  for  gun-bearing,  bag-carrying,  and  skin- 
ning, Outa  as  horse-boy,  and  John  as  cook  and 
caretaker  of  his  master,  for  he  had  already 
attached  himself  to  me  with  the  sincerity  of  a 
faithful  servant  and  was  now  watchful  of  my 
welfare,  especially  taking  upon  himself  to  warn 
me  when  he  detected  any  "  slim  "  manoeuvring 
over  camels  or  food  or  gifts  by  cunning  char- 
acters that  came  about  camp  or  were  met  on 
our  wayfaring. 

Delays  always  seem  to  dog  the  start  of  a  pre- 
arranged journey — the  more  anxiously  planned, 
the  more  sure  some  fateful  hitch  at  the  last 
moment — ^and  my  experience  at  the  "  end  of  the 
line  "  in  Nigeria  was  no  exception.  At  Kano  the 
large  quantity  of  stores  of  food  and  hunting 
accessories  that  were  to  carry  me  through  barren 
country  for  about  a  year  lacked  almost  all  gun 
and  rifle  ammunition  and  an  important  crate  of 
apparatus  for  entomological  work ;  all  of  which 


86  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

had  missed  the  steamer  at  Liverpool ;  which 
advice  I  received  in  due  course. 

However,  as  the  neighbourhood  of  Kano  had 
been  un worked  by  collectors,  it  was  not  unprofit- 
able to  make  a  beginning  there,  while  observa- 
tions alone  would  give  me  a  good  ground  work 
to  go  on  as  I  moved  further  north,  for  by  being 
familiar  with  species  that  inhabited  the  Kano 
region  of  Northern  Nigeria,  I  could  the  more 
surely  detect  types  peculiar  to  localities  or  given 
latitudes  as  I  encountered  them  in  the  Sudan. 

Therefore  I  did  not  stay  many  days  in  Kano 
while  waiting  the  arrival  of  the  lost  supplies,  and 
with  the  aid  of  native  carriers  moved  out  with  all 
my  baggage  to  camp  about  six  miles  north  of  the 
town  near  to  a  small  village  named  Farniso. 

My  experiences  there  need  not  be  unduly  dwelt 
on.  The  country-side  was  for  the  most  part 
thickly  populated  and  well  cultivated,  and  col- 
lecting was  not  of  an  exciting  order.  There  were 
no  antelope  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  jackals  and 
foxes  were  the  largest  animals  I  collected.  Jackals 
were  very  plentiful,  and  I  have  seen  their  dens 
even  in  the  walls  of  Kano. 

Reports  reached  me  that  there  were  a  few  lions 
in  low-lying  country  on  the  Hadeija  river,  where 
it  passes  through  N'gourou,  and  also  that  there 
was  some  good  big-game  country  east  of  Kano 
towards  Maidugari  (nearing  Lake  Chad  territory), 
and  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  such  reports  were 
true,  although  I  had  no  opportunity  of  hunting  in 
those  localities.  I  judge  that  the  big-game  hunter 
who  journeyed  to  Kano  would  not  find  his  hunting 
there,  but  would  seek  it  some  days  away  to  the 


WILD   LIFE  AT  KANO  B7 

east  or  the  west  or  the  north.  I  know  not 
the  territory  any  great  distance  east  and  west, 
but  I  know  something  of  it  northwards,  and 
anon  will  explain  where  game  lies  where  I 
have  seen. 

Though  collecting  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Kano  was  not  exciting,  bird  life  was  attractive  and 
abundant,  as  were  small  mammals,  and  my  days 
were  well  filled  hunting  in  the  early  morning  or 
late  afternoon  during  the  hours  of  feeding  and 
movement  of  the  creatures  of  the  underbush,  who 
dislike  as  much  as  humans  do  the  intense  heat  of 
an  overhead  sun,  and  skinning  and  setting  speci- 
mens all  through  the  day,  and  after  dark  at  night, 
in  camp.  During  the  few  weeks  I  remained 
camped  near  Farniso  I  collected  207  birds  and  83 
mammals,  and  also  a  quantity  of  butterflies  and 
moths. 

In  due  course  the  lost  ammunition  arrived  and 
a  great  anxiety  was  lifted  from  my  mind,  for  new 
regulations  with  regard  to  arms  and  ammunition 
being  exported  from  England  were  so  complicated 
at  the  time,  that  long  delay,  or  even  loss  of  authori- 
sation was  possible  if  not  probable  ;  and  I  would 
have  been  in  a  nice  predicament  and  completely 
crippled  without  this  item,  which  was  so  indis- 
pensable to  me  on  my  journey.  I  assure  you  I 
could  have  shouted  with  sheer  joy  when  I  saw  the 
small  weighty  business-like  boxes  coming  into 
camp  on  the  heads  of  carriers  that  were  groaning 
under  their  loads. 

The  arrival  of  ammunition  stores  left  me  free 
to  begin  the  camel  journey  northward  over  the 
boundary  into  French  territory,  though  I  was  still 


38  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

short  of  the  crate  of  entomological  apparatus — 
which  did  not  reach  me  till  more  than  a  month 
later,  forwarded  by  courtesy  of  the  French 
officials. 

In  departing  from  Kano  I  would  say  good-bye 
to  the  last  post  that  boasted  of  civilisation  and 
pass  "  out  of  the  world,"  for  there  are  surely  few 
places  on  the  face  of  the  earth  more  remote  and 
God-forsaken  than  the  interior  Sahara  of  Central 
Africa — ^as  in  due  course  I  was  to  learn  ;  though 
in  this  I  was  to  some  extent  prepared  by  study 
of  bare  incomplete  maps,  and  in  finding  how 
difficult  it  was  to  glean  any  information  of  the 
country  in  England  before  sailing.  But  I  was 
not  prepared  to  find  how  little  was  known  of  the 
country  at  Kano,  where  I  had  calculated  I  would 
probably  learn  much  about  my  journey  ahead, 
whereas,  in  fact,  I  gained  practically  no  informa- 
tion from  the  few  white  men  there,  and  very  little 
from  natives,  who  were  much  given  to  reticence 
with  strangers,  or,  if  free-spoken,  to  wild  exaggera- 
tions. I  did  not  meet  a  single  Englishman  or 
Scot  in  Kano  who  had  been  across  the  boundary 
into  French  territory  as  far  as  Zinder,  which  is 
a  ten  days'  camel  journey  north,  and  it  is  strange 
but  really  true  that  almost  as  little  is  known  of 
the  Territoire  du  Niger  in  Nigeria  as  in  England, 
though  the  two  former  are  next-door  neighbours. 
But  so  far  as  travelling  to  Zinder  is  concerned, 
apart  from  Zinder  being  in  French  Territory,  it 
can  be  readily  understood  why  British  Europeans 
do  not  make  the  journey  from  Kano  if  one  can 
realise  the  desolation  of  the  country  and  the 
exhausting  heat  of  the  African  sun,  which  makes 


LOCAL  CURRENCY  89 

such  a  trip,  merely  for  the  sake  of  sight-seeing, 
altogether  uninviting. 

By  reason  of  preparing  to  enter  this  land  that 
knew  the  sadness  and  solitude  of  "  the  lone 
places "  rather  than  even  the  rudiments  of 
civilisation  and  commerce,  I  had  perforce  to  carry 
all  stores  necessary  to  life ;  and  I  must  carry 
money  also — not  a  little,  but  a  quantity  sufficient 
to  last  me  over  a  protracted  period.  Therefore, 
my  last  act  on  the  eve  of  departing  was  to  ride 
into  Kano  to  draw  money  from  the  bank.  And 
through  the  kindness  of  the  manager  of  the  Bank 
of  British  West  Africa,  who  rightly  viewed  my 
task  in  the  light  of  one  of  national  importance  and 
not  one  of  trade,  I  was  enabled  to  have  the  large 
quantity  I  required  issued  to  me  in  silver  ;  which 
was  a  generous  concession  on  his  part,  and  of  the 
utmost  value  to  me,  for  silver  was  at  that  time  at 
a  premium,  and  one  could  purchase  at  least  25  per 
cent,  more  with  coin  than  with  paper-money, 
which  found  ill -favour  with  the  natives. 

There  are  two  reasons  why  notes,  which,  at  the 
time  of  my  visit  to  West  Africa,  were  causing  much 
inconvenience  and  concern  to  traders  in  Nigeria 
and  to  the  military  officials  in  the  French  colony, 
are  disliked.  In  the  first  place,  many  of  the 
natives  are  unable  to  read  the  value  printed  on 
paper-money,  both  the  actual  figures  and  the  word- 
ing being  in  English,  so  that  when  it  is  tendered  in 
purchase,  they  are  sometimes  doubtful  of  the  value 
they  are  receiving ;  whereas  with  coin  they  can 
easily  judge  the  different  values  by  the  variety 
of  size.  Secondly,  it  is  the  habit  of  the  natives 
to  conceal  their  wealth  in  a  secret  hole  in  the  walls 


40  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

of  their  huts  or  in  the  ground,  and  paper-money 
is  not  adapted  for  such  a  purpose,  since  it  is  not 
impervious  to  damp  in  the  rainy  season,  nor  the 
ravages  of  white  ants  or  mice  at  all  times.  Further- 
more, the  "brown  paper"  shilling  currency  is  a 
poor  affair  at  best,  and  not  durable  to  the  large 
amount  of  outdoor  handling  which  money  receives 
at  the  hands  of  the  natives,  and  whenever  a  note 
becomes  torn,  it  is  looked  upon  as  valueless  among 
themselves,  and  quickly  reaches  the  white  man's 
store,  where  it  is  known  it  will  be  accepted  and 
taken  off  their  hands. 

So,  with  knowledge  of  the  drawbacks  of  paper,  I 
gleefully  returned  to  camp  with  my  supply  of 
silver,  and  that  night  secreted  the  major  portion 
of  the  coin  in  various  ammunition  boxes  in  the 
hope  that  it  would  in  that  way  escape  detection 
and  plunder  on  my  long  journey.  Silver  in 
quantity  is  very  heavy  to  transport,  but  that  was 
fully  compensated  for — for  had  it  not  the  power 
to  put  one  on  good  terms  at  once  in  all  dealings 
necessary  with  natives  ?  Further,  I  found  it 
unnecessary  to  make  exchange  to  French  coin 
once  I  had  crossed  the  Frontier,  since  the 
English  shilling  and  two-shilling  piece  were 
acceptable  everywhere. 

I  secured  ten  camels  for  my  journey  to  Zinder, 
and  not,  in  a  limited  time,  since  it  was  ground- 
nut season,  when  transport  animals  are  in  great 
demand,  being  able  to  obtain  the  full  number 
required  to  transport  my  loads,  which  weighed 
close  on  4,000  lbs.,  I  had  to  fall  back  on  oxen  to 
complete  the  complement,  taking  four  of  the 
latter  to  carry  loads  equivalent  to  that  which  two 


CAMELS   OF  HAUSALAND  41 

camels  could  carry.  Camels  can  load  300  to  400 
lbs. 

The  camels  of  Hausaland  and  the  Territoire 
Militaire  du  Niger  are  the  one-humped  race  that 
are  named  "  Rakumi  "  in  Hausa  and  "Alum"  in 
Tamashack,  and  they  are  the  outstanding  trans- 
port animals  of  the  country.  Indeed,  without 
camels  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  the  inhabitants  of 
the  interior  Sahara  could  subsist,  for  they  are,  in 
essentials,  the  only  animals  truly  adapted  to  long 
journeys  in  barren  land,  where  water  and  food  are 
often  very  scarce.  The  distance  they  can  travel 
with  300  to  400  lbs.  loaded  on  their  backs,  and 
their  uncomplaining  endurance  is  altogether 
marvellous,  and  it  would  be  a  man  of  poor  appre- 
ciation indeed  who  knew  their  habits  and  had  not 
praise  for  them. 

Donkeys  and  oxen  are  two  other  animals  of 
transport  which  are  used  on  routes  that  are  not 
too  severe,  and  donkeys  in  their  patience  and  en- 
durance have  some  of  the  commendable  traits 
of  camels,  and  are  capable  of  accomplishing  long 
journeys  if  not  too  heavily  loaded — 100  to  150  lbs. 
is  a  fair  load — ^though  they  are  slower  in  getting 
over  the  ground.  Oxen,  on  the  other  hand,  are  of 
secondary  value  as  transport  animals,  and  are 
seldom  satisfactory  on  a  journey  of  any  length, 
for  they  do  not  harden  well  to  their  work,  and  often 
break  down  tamely  under  a  prolonged  burden. 
This  is  because  the  heat  of  day  is  very  trying  on 
them  when  en  route,  while  it  has  little  effect  on 
either  camels  or  donkeys. 

As  Air,  and  the  section  of  the  Territoire  Mili- 
taire through  which  my  journey  led  me  is  the 
5 


42  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

home  of  the  camel,  and  since  I  travelled  hundreds 
of  miles  with  those  fine  animals,  perhaps  a  few 
remarks  concerning  them  would  not  be  out  of 
place. 

The  market-price  of  camels  in  1920  at  Kano 
and  Agades  was  about  £8  for  a  young  beast  4 
years  old,  and  about  £15  for  a  full-grown  animal 

9  to  15  years  old.  Those  prices,  even  though 
they  have  risen  considerably  since  the  war,  like 
everything  else  even  in  such  remote  parts,  must 
appear  small  if  it  is  taken  into  consideration  that 
camels  require  to  be  nourished  and  reared  for  8  to 

10  years  before  they  have  reached  maturity  and 
are  really  fit  to  join  the  caravans  and  bring  recom- 
pense to  the  owner.  On  one  occasion  I  saw  a 
young  camel  of  4  years,  small  and  still  with  a 
semi-calf  look  about  it,  being  ridden  by  a  Tuareg 
who  was  a  lightweight ;  but  to  break  a  camel  at 
that  age  is  quite  exceptional,  if  not  foolish,  for 
in  all  probability  this  early  labour,  before  bones 
are  hardened  and  muscles  full  and  set,  spoils 
the  ultimate  development  of  the  animal.  Some 
camels  are  considered  developed  enough  for 
short  journeys  when  6  years  old,  though  they  are 
seldom  fully  matured  until  8,  9,  or  10  years,  while 
they  reach  their  prime  about  the  age  of  15  years  ; 
afterwards  they  begin  to  lose  a  little  ground,  but 
are  often  quite  useful  and  strong  up  to  and  over 
20  years.  At  an  age  of  30  years  a  camel  may  be 
said  to  be  altogether  beyond  work. 

In  colour  there  is  considerable  range  among 
camels,  the  most  common  variety  in  this  terri- 
tory being  light  buffish-brown,  somewhat  re- 
sembling sand,  while  piebald  and  brindled  camels 


A    HAUSA   NATIVE    RIDIXG    AN    OX,    KAXO, 


OATXLE    OF    HAU.SALA.VU. 


48] 


DESCRIPTION   OF  CAMELS  43 

are  also  numerous,  the  latter  having  random 
patches  of  white  on  a  surface  that  is  chiefly 
dull  lead-like  blackish-grey.  Those  piebald  and 
brindled  beasts  are  reputed  to  be  an  Air  race,  but 
how  far  that  is  true  I  had  no  opportunity  of 
proving,  though  I  can  vouch  for  having  seen 
among  the  Air  mountains  more  camel-calves  of 
that  colour  than  any  other.  Moreover,  it  is  a 
splendid  protective  colour  against  the  mountain 
background  of  blackish  rock  and  pools  of  sand,  so 
that  the  claim  has  at  least  that  in  its  favour.  A 
colour  that  is  not  very  common  among  camels  is 
pure  white,  while  one  that  is  quite  rare  is  rich 
tawny  reddish  buff.  I  have  seen  a  score  of 
animals  of  the  former  colour,  but  only  two  of 
the  latter. 

In  selecting  camels  to  make  up  a  caravan,  it 
is  problematical  whether  you  get  good-tempered 
or  bad-tempered  beasts,  and  one  should  be 
optimistic  enough  to  accept  the  bad  with  the  good 
and  put  up  with  the  annoyance  of  saddling  and 
loading  cantankerous  individuals,  for  there  is  no 
caravan  was  ever  without  them.  But  if  you  wish 
to  use  a  camel  for  hunting — and  they  are  exceed- 
ingly good  for  the  purpose,  being  very  noiseless  of 
foot — great  care  in  selection  should  be  exercised, 
and  only  a  tried  animal  should  be  used  which  is 
good-tempered  and  taught  that  it  must  not  roar 
as  you  dismount  to  commence  your  stalk  on 
sighting  game.  The  awkward  and  somewhat 
wooden  appearance  of  camels  does  not  lead  one  to 
associate  much  intelligence  with  them,  but  to 
think  so  is  a  mistake,  and  if  one  desires  to  have  a 
really  good  hunting  camel,  I  know  of  no  better 


44  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

method  to  secure  it  than  to  select  a  good-natured 
beast  from  the  rank  and  file,  and  hand-feed  it 
with  tit-bits  of  vegetation,  and  pet  it  when  mount- 
ing and  dismounting,  and  let  no  one  else  saddle 
it  or  ride  it,  and  before  long  you  will  be  aston- 
ished to  find  that  you  have  won  a  queer  pet  and  a 
useful  and  obedient  comrade.  It  will  have  been 
gathered  that  it  is  the  noisiness  of  the  brutes  that 
has  to  be  guarded  against  when  hunting,  and 
that  is  so,  for  they  are  fearful  beasts  to  roar  on 
the  slightest  provocation.  Besides  being  timid 
animals,  they  are  very  tender  skinned,  and  almost 
all  of  them  emit  a  loud  complaining  roar  when- 
ever they  are  touched  by  a  human  hand  or  there  is 
the  slightest  movement  in  the  position  of  the 
saddle  in  mounting  or  dismounting ;  while  if  an 
animal  happens  to  be  suffering  with  horrible  septic 
saddle-sores,  such  as  are  very  common,  it  is  sure 
to  make  a  terrifying  uproar  whenever  approached. 
When  travelling  with  a  caravan,  it  is  usual  to 
commence  to  load  up  before  daylight  and  get  well 
started  on  the  way  before  sunrise,  which  is  about 
6.30  a.m.,  or — especially  if  there  be  a  moon — ^to 
make  a  start  at  2  or  3  a.m.  in  the  night,  and  travel 
the  greater  part  of  the  day's  journey  free  from  the 
rays  of  the  exhausting  sun.  On  such  occasions 
the  camels  are  gathered  in  at  sundown  on  the  eve 
before  from  browsing  among  the  acacias,  and  made 
to  lie  down  by  the  camp-fire,  so  that  they  are  at 
hand  when  the  camel-men  go  to  work  in  the  dark- 
ness. Then,  when  the  hour  to  start  comes  round, 
logs  that  have  been  collected  the  night  before  are 
kindled  to  make  a  blazing  fire,  and  by  the  light  of 
the  flames  the  loads  are  securely  roped  and  loaded 


ON  LOADING   CAMELS  45 

across  the  pack-saddles,  so  that  equally  balanced 
packs  rest  on  either  side,  while  throughout  the 
process  the  black  bush  silence  of  the  night  is 
rudely  broken  by  the  deep  querulous  roars  of  the 
camels  in  protest  against  being  handled.  Load- 
ing up  in  the  poor  light  of  night  is  a  slow  process, 
and  in  my  case  three  or  four  men  usually  took 
from  an  hour  to  an  hour  and  a  half  to  load  ten  to 
fifteen  camels.  But  the  secret  of  a  smooth  jour- 
ney is  to  begin  the  day  with  loads  thoroughly 
secure  and  well  balanced  so  that  they  will  not 
annoy  the  bearer ;  and  with  bulky  loads,  such  as 
the  chop-boxes  and  collecting-cases  of  the  white 
man,  which  are  unfamiliar  and  clumsy  both  to 
the  natives  and  their  beasts,  it  requires  consider- 
able care  in  loading  to  be  reasonably  sure  of  a 
well-ordered  start.  When  things  do  not  go  well,  it 
is  a  mistake  for  the  traveller  to  become  impatient 
and  abuse  or  hurry  the  camel-men  in  the  early 
morning,  when  tempers  are  apt  to  be  short,  for 
although  they  are  undoubtedly  slow  in  their 
methods,  they  know  their  work  and  their  animals, 
and  will  make  the  better  loads  if  left  alone,  and 
you  merely  lend  a  hand  here  and  there,  and  joke 
with  them  over  their  work,  and  thus  gain  their 
good-will  and  confidence.  As  to  the  type  of 
saddle,  a  serviceable  and  simple  saddle  is  made  of 
wood  in  this  fashion :  first  there  are  two  arch- 
shaped  pieces  which  are  made  to  fit  over  the  back 
of  the  animal,  and  which  rest  before  and  behind 
the  hump,  while  underneath  them  are  bound 
leather  pads  filled  with  palm  fibre,  so  that  the 
saddle  is  comfortably  received  on  the  camel's 
back;  secondly,  from  the  back  and  front  pieces 


46  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

there  are  run  four  horizontal  bars,  which  are 
bound  in  position  to  the  arches  with  goat-skin 
or  sheep -skin  thongs,  whereby  the  saddle  is  made 
rigid  and  complete.  It  is  a  very  simple  piece  of 
construction,  but  serves  the  purpose. 

Sometimes  no  saddle  is  used  when  carrying 
good  loads,  such  as  bales  of  grain  or  salt,  which 
naturally  lie  very  close  and  compactly  to  the  body 
of  an  animal,  in  which  event  two  long  goat-skins 
are  used,  puffed  out  like  pillows  with  filling, 
which  are  thrown  over  the  back  on  either  side  of 
the  hump,  and  receive  the  burdened  load  ropes 
which  carry  the  bales  in  position  on  the  sides. 

When  loading  camels  on  the  first  day  at  the 
commencement  of  a  journey,  or  after  having 
been  idle  for  a  week  or  two  turned  loose  in  the 
bush,  they  are  afraid  of  their  unfamiliar  loads, 
and  behave  like  bolting  horses  or  wild  colts, 
and  saddles  and  packs  are  no  sooner  secured,  and 
the  brutes  on  to  their  feet,  than  they  show  their 
ill-humour  and  everything  is  thrown  to  the  ground 
again.  Once,  twice,  even  thrice  this  may  happen 
with  three  or  four  camels  in  the  caravan,  while  it 
seems  as  if  you  will  never  be  able  to  get  out  and 
away  on  the  road.  But  in  the  end  all  are  ready 
and  in  line  and  a  start  is  made.  But  on  that  day 
you  are  sure  of  trouble  en  route  with  the  fractious 
animals,  and  not  until  the  morrow  need  you 
expect  anything  like  reasonable  order,  when  you 
will  almost  surely  find  that  even  the  worst  of  the 
brutes  has  become  docile  and  resigned  to  steady 
work. 

I  did  not  miss  any  of  my  share  of  this  sort  of  ex- 
perience when  the  day  came  for  me  to  set  out  from 


DIFFICULTIES  AT  THE  START  47 

Kano — ^I  don't  think  anyone  does.     Camels  and 
their  Tuareg  drivers  were  in  my  camp  at  Farniso 
ready  to  start  on  the  morrow  (12th  January). 
That  evening  trouble  began  :  the  camel-men,  not 
having  finished  their  private  bargaining  in  Kano 
and  seeking  an  excuse  to  delay,  had  put  their 
heads  together,  with  the  result  that  they  con- 
cocted a  story  that  they  had  not  enough  rope  to 
cope  with  the  tying  of  the  awkward  loads  of  the 
white  man — which  was  true,  in  fact,  though  anyone 
might  know  that  it  was  not  necessary  to  go  to 
Kano  to  secure  them  with  a  village  close  at  hand. 
However,  knowing  their  homes  were  distant,  and 
that  it   might  be  long  before  they  had  again 
occasion  to  visit  Kano,  I  gave  permission  for  one 
of  them  to  go   back,   provided   he  would  start 
there  that  night  when  the  moon  rose  at  11.30 
p.m.,   which  he  promised  to   do.     Being  easy- 
going and  trusting  at  that  time,  which  was  before 
I  had  much  knowledge  of  the  plausible  and  sly- 
tongued  Tuareg,  I  turned  in  and  slept  soundly 
— and  so  did  the  cameleer,  for  next  morning  I 
learned  that  he  had  not  started  for  Kano  until 
daylight.   This  meant  that  the  whole  morning  was 
lost — ^not  very  pleasant  when  tents  are  down  and 
everything  you  possess  is  bundled  up  and  roped 
in  camel-loads,  and  there  is  nothing  left  to  do  but 
sit  on  them  and  smoke  innumerable  cigarettes 
and  inwardly  curse  your   camel-men   and   your 
luck. 

The  camels  were,  in  the  meantime,  turned  at 
large  to  feed  in  the  neighbourhood  with  their 
fore-feet  hobbled,  which  was  as  it  should  be  ;  and 
all  was  right  until  the  man  returned  from  Kano 


48  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

with  more  ropes  and  his  purchases  of  cloth,  and  a 
cameleer  hastened  out  to  bring  in  the  animals, 
but  returned  in  about  an  hour  to  say  that  he 
could  not  find  two  of  the  camels. 

At  this  stage  everything  seemed  fated  to  go 
wrong  on  this  day. 

But  there  is  a  rift  in  the  clouds  even  on  the 
worst  of  days,  and  in  the  end  the  lost  camels 
appeared  in  view,  coming  in  at  a  breakneck  pace 
before  a  mounted  camel-man  who  had  skilfully 
tracked  them  down  in  the  sand  for  a  long  distance 
and  rounded  them  up.  The  brutes,  though 
their  fore-feet  were  hobbled,  had  tried  to  return 
to  their  old  haunts  in  Kano. 

It  was  after  3  p.m.  before  we  got  loaded  and 
away  on  this  ill-fated  day. 

I  had  arranged  before  starting  that  we  would 
camp  at  Fogalawa,  18  miles  away,  and  it  was  well 
I  did  so,  for,  after  starting  out  together  on  the 
road,  I  did  not  see  the  main  part  of  the  caravan 
again  until  midnight,  since  I  remained  throughout 
the  journey  with  the  tail-end  of  the  line,  where  an 
obstreperous  and  unruly  old  female  camel  made 
the  devil's  own  trouble,  and  threw  her  load  again 
and  again  with  most  vicious  determination. 
The  climax  came  close  on  sunset,  when  the  camel- 
man  and  I  were  overheated  and  dust-grimed  and 
angry  over  our  exertions,  and  the  cantankerous 
brute  cut  loose  once  again,  and  threw  and  shat- 
tered the  chop-boxes  and  strewed  the  contents  on 
the  road.  While  bemoaning  my  ill-luck,  and 
letting  tongue  run  loose  on  the  virtues  (?)  of  our 
beast  of  burden,  and  at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  do 
next,  a  native  chanced  to  come  up  with  some 


DEPARTURE   FROM  KANO  49 

unloaded  camels,  and  I  was  able  to  strike  a  bargain 
for  a  beast  to  take  the  place  of  the  unruly  one. 

Thereafter  the  journey  was  a  smooth  one,  but, 
nevertheless,  I  had  lost  so  much  time  on  the  way 
that  it  was  midnight  before  I  came  into  camp 
behind  the  last  camel,  and  had  been  nine  hours  on 
a  journey  that  should  ordinarily  take  five  and  a 
half  to  six  and  a  half  hours. 

So  much  for  the  discrepancies  of  the  "  first 
day" ;  and  now  I  must  return  to  our  starting-point, 
so  that  I  may  tell  of  the  wayside.  During  the 
afternoon  and  through  the  night  in  the  darkness 
we  travelled  over  a  broad  roadway  of  loose 
shifting  sand  that  held  north  through  fairly  open 
country  that  was,  in  general,  under  cultivation. 
Trees  were  plentiful,  growing  for  the  most  part 
singly  and  not  in  close-set  mass,  but  they  do  not 
impress  one  with  height  or  stature  at  this  season, 
though  in  the  Rains  the  full-leaved  trees  of  any 
size  are  imposing  and  conspicuous  enough  in  most 
of  the  flat  country  between  Kano  and  Kanya. 
No  doubt  the  whole  country  has  been  covered 
with  acacia  bush  at  one  time,  with  an  odd  large 
tree  shooting  above  the  dwarf  forests  here  and 
there,  and  though  the  acacia  bush  has  been 
cleared  away  to  give  place  to  cultivation,  the  big 
trees  have  been  left  standing,  since  to  the  toilers 
in  the  fields  they  are  harbours  of  shade  from  the 
merciless  sun. 

Along  the  road  a  constant  incoming  string  of 
caravans  of  camels  and  donkeys  and  oxen  passed 
us,  carrying  bulging  bales  of  ground-nuts  to  Kano, 
for  the  ground-nut  season  had  begun,  and 
unprecedented  prices  were  being  paid  for  them  by 


50  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

the  white  man,  which  had  created  a  widespread 
boom  in  the  district  and  a  tremendous  wave  of 
speculative  excitement.  It  was  a  great  year  — 
1920 — of  prosperity  for  the  natives  of  Kano,  this 
last  fling  of  commercial  extravagance  at  the  end 
of  the  war — a  rich  year  that,  in  the  end,  must  have 
left  its  mark,  for  one  could  easily  forecast  the  time 
to  come,  when  there  would  be  acute  comparisons 
between  the  heyday  of  the  boom  and  that  other 
day  when  the  boom  must  burst,  and  hearts  be  sore 
— for  it  is  hard  even  for  a  native  to  come  back  to 
the  solid  old  ground-level  after  he  thinks  he  has 
reached  a  golden  citadel  in  the  clouds. 

Next  morning  we  continued  on  our  way  with- 
out any  repetition  of  trouble  with  the  animals, 
and  the  old  camel,  that  had  stubbornly  refused  to 
carry  the  white  man's  boxes  yesterday,  to-day 
carried  with  ease  a  greater  load  of  ammunition 
packed  in  native  grass-woven  bales.  The  brute 
had  been  nothing  more  than  wildly  scared  of  the 
strange  articles  that  it  had  been  set  to  carry. 

The  road  continued  broad  to-day,  but  grew  ever 
heavier  underfoot  with  loose  sand.  By  the  way- 
side there  was  not  so  much  cultivation  as  yesterday, 
and  few  habitations,  except  at  Kore  and  Minna. 
We  camped  in  mid-afternoon  at  the  small  village 
of  Kanya  after  a  pleasantly  smooth  journey.  It 
was  gratifying,  after  our  trials  of  yesterday,  to 
see  how  nicely  the  camels  of  a  well-ordered  cara- 
van move  forward  over  the  ground  with  their  soft- 
footed  methodical  gait ;  they  get  over  the  heavy 
sand  road  not  only  with  their  long  pacing  stride, 
in  which  both  legs  on  the  same  side  are  lifted 
together,    but   also  they   move   with  a  strange 


CARAVAN  TRAVELLING  COMMENCED      51 

stealthy  silence,  which  is  due  to  the  rubber-like 
give  of  their  soft  elastic  pads.  A  further  odd  and 
striking  detail  about  the  feet  of  a  camel  is  that, 
unlike  other  animals,  the  fore-feet  are  larger  than 
the  hind-feet. 

Travelling  by  the  wayside  in  inhabited  country, 
if  you  happen  to  be  near  human  dwellings,  cock- 
crows will  herald  in  the  African  dawn  from  some 
village  hut-top  obscure  among  the  bush  foliage, 
and  on  the  third  day  we  were  busy  with  the  load- 
ropes  in  the  chill  of  late  darkness  ere  the  first  glad 
cock-call  told  of  approaching  day.  Already  we 
had  learned  that  it  was  wise  to  travel  in  the  cool 
hours  as  far  as  possible  and  save  our  animals  from 
the  great  heat  of  day,  so  long  as  short  nights  and 
loss  of  sleep  were  not  over-fatiguing  to  ourselves, 
or,  rather,  perhaps  I  should  say  to  myself  alone, 
for  natives  have  the  knack  of  sleeping  in  daylight 
just  as  easily  as  in  darkness,  and  throw  themselves 
down  in  any  little  patch  of  tree-shade  at  the  end 
of  a  journey  and  retrieve  their  night-sleep  almost 
before  it  is  lost :  while  that  I  could  never  do,  even 
if  I  had  not  work  to  attend  to. 

But  there  was  one  native  with  me  who  worked 
long  hours  without  sleep  much  as  I  did,  and  he 
was  the  faithful  John.  On  his  broad  shoulders 
rested  all  the  petty  duties  of  attending  to  his 
master's  welfare  in  camp  :  a  host  of  small  duties 
indeed,  such  as  cooking  meals  at  any  hour— 
early  or  late,  at  noon  or  midnight ;  pitching  or 
striking  my  camp-bed  (for  I  slept  in  the  open) ; 
or  doing  the  services  of  a  valet  in  looking  after 
all  my  personal  belongings,  and  my  toilet,  even 
washing  clothes  when  he  had  the  time  to  spare — 


52  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

in  general,  cookboy  and  houseboy  all  in  one,  and 
a  treasure.  Moreover,  he  afforded  amusement  all 
round  through  the  medium  of  his  perpetual 
cheerfulness  and  expansive  grin.  Often  I  have 
laughed  to  see  him,  after  the  rush  of  getting  ready 
to  start,  when  he  had  got  the  last  bundle  turned 
over  to  the  camel-men  and  his  master's  camp 
clear,  come  saucily  forward  in  his  cloth  cap  and 
with  his  cane  walking-stick — both  relics  of  the 
coast  which  were  inseparable  from  his  person — 
and  with  a  perceptible  swagger  over  his 
"English  "  (?)  and  his  importance  as  the  master's 
boy,  grin  broadly  and  ejaculate  to  the  head 
camel-man :  "  Come  on,  come  on,  Aboki  (friend), 
we  wait  for  you  1  "  which  assurance  always  pro- 
voked laughter  among  the  men,  while  Sakari 
explained  to  them  in  Hausa  John's  "  English  "  (?), 
and  added  to  it  in  the  telling. 

The  Harmattan  winds  had  been  very  pro- 
nounced since  starting,  and  the  third  day  was  as 
bad  as  its  predecessors.  So  full  of  sand-dust  was 
the  air,  that  a  white  cloud  hung  over  the  land 
through  which  the  sun  was  unable  to  break  clearly. 
The  mane  of  my  horse  was  white  with  dust,  and, 
looking  on  the  acacia  trees  a  little  way  off  in  the 
bush,  they  had  the  appearance  they  would  bear 
on  a  frosty  morning,  with  the  fine  dust,  like  white 
mist,  hanging  low  and  falling  upon  them  to  lie 
whitely  upon  the  leaves  and  boughs. 

I  noticed  at  Kanya,  and  beyond,  that  the 
peculiar  reddish  sand  and  soil  of  Kano  had  given 
place  to  ordinary  whitish-grey. 

On  this  day  we  travelled  to  Jigawa,  18  miles 
away,  on  the  banks  of  the  Tomas  river,  which, 


ON  THE  FRENCH  FRONTIER  53 

though  it  was  nothing  more  than  dry  bed  at  this 
season,  is  a  very  considerable  stream  during  the 
Rains,  quite  one  hundred  yards  across  the  flood- 
water.  The  place  is  a  small  town,  with  the 
remains  of  a  stockade  about  its  outskirts,  and  it 
contained  wells  of  water  and  the  usual  village 
produce  of  eggs,  fowls,  and  millet-meal,  as  well 
as  goats  and  cattle.  It  may  be  stated  here 
that  there  is  no  scarcity  of  water  or  food  ex- 
perienced anywhere  on  the  journey  from  Kano  to 
Zinder. 

I  heard  at  this  village  the  first  news  of  big 
game  that  I  had  had,  and  in  the  cool  of  the  after- 
noon I  went  out  westward  to  investigate,  and  the 
result  of  a  prolonged  hunt  through  fairly  open 
thorn  bush  was  that  I  sighted,  and  viewed  through 
field-glasses,  four  Red-fronted  Gazelle,  which  the 
local  natives  with  me  said  were  in  fair  numbers 
in  the  neighbourhood.  The  beasts,  at  which  I 
fired  one  ineffectual  shot,  were  very  wild,  and  gave 
me  the  impression  that  they  were  disturbed  often 
by  the  natives  who  hunt  them. 

The  fourth  day  was  a  pleasant  one,  for  it  entailed 
only  a  short  ten- mile  journey ;  and  I  can  assure 
you  that  a  short  day  after  two  or  three  long,  hot, 
and  exhausting  ones  is  a  very  agreeable  change. 

We  camped  at  noon  at  Barbara,  our  day's  task 
finished  ;  and  the  camels  were  hobbled  and  turned 
out  into  the  scrub  bush  to  enjoy  a  lengthy  repast. 
Barbara  is  a  large  town  that  lies  five  miles  on 
the  British  side  of  the  frontier,  and  here  it  was 
that  I  bid  good-bye  to  Nigeria  for  a  time. 
Hence  I  made  it  a  stopping-place,  and  an 
easy  day.     (I  did  the  same  thing  many  months 


54  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

later,  on  my  return,  and  was  royally  received  by 
the  Saraki  (native  king)  and  his  people — a  large 
number  of  whom  were  Fulani — who  en  masse 
spent  the  day  in  holiday  and  dance  because  the 
White  Man  had  safely  returned  and  was  glad.) 

On  the  morrow  we  crossed  the  boundary  and 
entered  French  territory,  having  crossed  the  line 
about  an  hour  after  starting  where  it  lay  between 
the  two  small  villages  of  Baban  Mutum  (British) 
and  Dashi  (French) ;  places,  like  many  others, 
that  were  not  shown  on  either  of  the  incomplete 
maps  I  possessed,  which  were  the  best  I  could 
procure  in  England. 

In  the  afternoon  we  halted  and  camped  at 
Magaria,  where  there  is  a  small  French  fort  com- 
manded by  a  European  officer,  with  native  troops 
under  him.  Here  I  was  most  cordially  welcomed 
to  French  soil,  and  enjoyed  the  frank,  unfettered 
hospitality  that  for  ever  is  to  be  found  with  the 
big-hearted  men  of  the  Lone  Places.  Though 
I  was  not  yet  more  than  eighty-five  miles  from 
Kano,  a  European  visitor  was  rare  to  the  board  of 
this  solitary  soldier,  and  so  I  was  made  doubly 
welcome  over  our  cups  of  good  comradeship, 
though  neither  could  glibly  speak  the  other's 
tongue,  and  conversation  was  carried  on  for  the 
most  part  in  halting  words  of  Hausa.  He  was  a 
jovial  good  fellow,  beside  being  the  kindest  of 
hosts,  and  ere  the  day  was  out  I  think  we  put 
the  sober  mud  walls  of  his  little  cabin  to  shame 
with  our  gladness  and  laughter.  That  he  Was  a 
lone  man  could  be  gleaned  from  his  surroundings 
and  his  tastes.  For  companions  about  his  abode 
he  had  a  cage  full  of  little  waxbills,  a  grey  parrot. 


A  SMALL  FRENCH  FRONTIER  POST       55 

two  pie-dogs,  two  cats,  and  four  Dorcas  Gazelles — 
all  bird  and  beast  of  the  country-side,  except  the 
two  cats,  which  were  Persian.  The  barrack 
square  and  the  garden  of  the  Fort  afforded  him 
further  pleasures  in  homely  hobbies :  in  the 
square,  young  trees  had  been  lately  planted  to 
form  an  entrance  avenue  and  give  shade,  and  to 
watch  them  take  root  and  thrive  was  this  man's 
way  with  his  treasures.  And  in  the  garden  among 
the  shrubs  and  vegetables  his  interest  was  the 
same  to  coax  plants  that  were  not  indigenous  to 
grow  in  the  sandy,  thirsty  soil ;  and  that  he  had 
some  success  I  can  vouch  for,  for  there  were  beds 
of  such  vegetables  as  carrots,  radish,  beetroot, 
peas,  and  cabbage  growing  quite  fairly  at  the  time 
of  my  visit. 

As  I  progressed  later  on,  I  found  such  humble 
gardens  wherever  white  men  were  stationed :  only 
a  few  places  in  all,  it  is  true,  but  always  a  garden 
to  furnish  the  need  for  vegetables,  which  is  a 
pressing  one  to  the  health  of  Europeans  in  such 
a  barren  land  as  this,  for  rarely  vegetables  and 
no  fruit  can  be  obtained  from  natives.  Apropos 
to  this,  entering  a  country  of  tropical  heat,  I  was 
not  prepared  to  find  that  it  was  devoid  of  fruit 
(excepting  a  limited  amount  of  dates  in  the  rainy 
season),  and  the  discovery  disappointed  and  dis- 
mayed me,  I  must  confess,  for  it  left  me  on  short 
commons  in  that  respect  throughout  the  expedi- 
tion. And  when  one  lives  for  a  prolonged  period 
on  the  unchanging  diet  of  animals  that  fall  to 
your  hunting,  the  hunger  for  fruit  or  vegetable 
grows  ever  greater,  and  is,  at  times,  very  difficult 
to  allay. 


56  HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

The  sixth  day  found  us  on  the  road  at  dawn, 
with  Nigeria  behind  and  the  caravan  well  started 
on  the  way  to  Bande,  our  next  halt.  On  this  day 
and  the  next,  over  a  belt  of  about  twenty-five 
miles,  country  of  marked  change  was  passed 
through,  and  one  got  the  impression  that  it  was 
now  turning  more  to  desert.  Dum  palms,  in 
small  groups  or  solitary,  sceptral  with  their  tall 
graceful  stems  and  tufted  rustling  tops,  were  now 
in  the  landscape,  while  there  was  a  new  sense  of 
open  space  about  one,  such  as  is  felt  on  sea  or 
prairie,  which  was  brought  about  by  the  wide 
views  of  grass -grown  land  before  one  where  eye 
could  range  for  long  distances. 

With  the  regularity  of  routine  we  were  march- 
ing off  the  distance  on  the  map,  and  each  day  we 
camped  a  stage  further  on — and  a  day  nearer  to 
Zinder.  On  the  seventh  day  we  made  the  journey 
from  Bande  to  Makochia,  over  a  very  heavy  road 
of  loose  sand ;  on  the  eighth  we  camped  at  Dogo — 
ever  the  cruel  sand-drifting  winds  of  Harmattan 
in  our  faces,  while  ever  we  held  steadily  on,  for 
after  camels  are  loaded  at  the  dawning  of  day, 
never  halt  is  made  by  the  roadside  until  the 
journey's  end  is  reached  and  the  patient  brutes 
lie  down  and  are  relieved  of  their  burdens. 

The  day  of  our  journey  to  Dogo  was  one  of 
particularly  fierce  storm,  and  we  went  forward 
against  a  very  heavy  wind  and  enveloped  in  con- 
tinuous clouds  of  drifting  sand  :  and,  besides,  it 
was  so  cold  that  I  had  to  keep  on  my  woollen 
sweater  and  khaki  tunic  throughout  the  day, 
although  hitherto  I  had  not  on  any  day  worn  a 
tunic,  and  as  a  rule  discarded  my  sweater  an 


CLOUDS   OF  DRIFTING  SAND  57 

hour  or  two  after  the  chill  of  dawn.  At  Dogo  I 
was  forcibly  reminded  of  a  snowstorm  on  the 
Canadian  plains  ;  before  the  village  there  is  a 
wide  white  level  stretch  of  sand  almost  plant-bare, 
over  which  winds  and  driftings  rushed  fiercely 
from  afar  to  pounce  madly  upon  whatever  lay 
across  their  path.  Not  snowstorm  nor  piercing 
cold  are  elements  of  this  land,  but  imagine  the 
soft  sand  underfoot,  like  snow,  the  drifting 
sand,  the  snow  blizzard,  and  the  sting  of  the 
storm  in  eyes  and  nostrils  and  throat  as  un- 
pleasant as  the  tang  of  biting  cold,  and  you  have 
the  comparisons  that  have  a  very  decided  resem- 
blance. 

The  road  to  Dogo  lay  over  undulating  country, 
pale  with  dry  grass  and  sand,  with  a  touch  of  faded 
green  where  there  were  trees  in  the  open  spaces. 
It  should  be  a  fair  country  to  look  upon  in  the 
Rains,  but  it  is  for  the  present  inert,  and  dis- 
coloured with  the  drifting  sand,  and  is  a  melan- 
choly land  indeed. 

The  country  by  the  wayside  had  for  a  time  a 
pronounced  fall  away  to  a  deep  valley  visible  to 
the  west. 

The  altitude  of  Dogo  is  1,375  ft.,  so  that  we  had 
descended  some  300  ft.  since  leaving  Kano. 

Dogo  is  the  Hausa  for  tall,  but  I  could  gather 
no  particular  reason  for  the  name.  Had  it  been 
called  Gara  (the  white  ant),  however,  I  would  have 
well  understood,  for  I  have  seldom  seen  an  equal 
to  the  plague  of  termites  that  was  here :  boots, 
leggings,  articles  hung  to  the  wall,  every  box 
among  the  camel-loads,  was  attacked  by  the 
infernal  pests  as  soon  as  ever  we  camped  and 
6 


58      HAUSA— CURRENCY— CAMELS 

before  we  had  time  to  prepare  rough  timber  plat- 
forms to  raise  everything  off  the  ground.  White 
ants  have  to  be  guarded  against  everywhere  in  the 
Sudan,  but  I  never  saw  them  worse  than  at  Dogo. 

Next  day,  which  was  the  ninth  day  of  our 
journey,  we  reached  Baban  Tubki,  six  miles 
south  of  Zinder,  where  there  were  a  few  small 
date  groves  and  plentiful  well-water,  and  more 
luxuriant  vegetation  than  usual.  So  that  I 
decided  that  here  I  would  pitch  a  collecting  camp, 
and  with  that  purpose  in  view  swung  the  caravan 
west  of  the  road,  and  sought  a  camping-place 
among  the  scattered  trees  and  tall  grass  about  a 
mile  away.  Camels  were  unloaded  and  the  packs 
freed  from  their  many  ropings,  and  the  prepara- 
tions of  camp  erection  were  begun — and  trekking 
for  the  present  was  at  an  end.  .  .  . 

In  the  part  of  the  territory  of  Damagarim 
through  which  I  had  travelled  since  crossing  the 
frontier  there  was  no  great  change  from  that  of 
Nigeria.  It  was  certainly  less  populated,  but 
the  Hausa,  Fulani,  and  Beri-Beri  tribesmen  were 
the  same,  as  also  was  the  construction  of  their 
grass  huts  and  villages,  though  some  of  the  latter 
were  somewhat  dilapidated  and  had  the  aspect 
of  belonging  to  a  poorer  or  more  careless  class  of 
natives. 

So  far  as  I  could  tell  by  daily  short  excursions 
into  the  bush  off  the  road,  none  of  the  country  I 
had  passed  through  was  notable  for  big-game  ; 
but  if  I  was  to  hunt  in  that  particular  territory, 
I  would  start  at  Jigawa  (fifty-six  miles  north  from 
Kano),  and  work  north  as  far  as  Makochia,  about 
fifty  miles  further  on.     I  know  there  are  Red- 


WE   CAMP  NEAR  ZINDER  69 

fronted  and  Dorcas  Gazelles  in  that  belt,  but  that 
is  as  far  as  my  limited  knowledge  goes  for  the 
present. 

By  the  wayside,  each  day,  I  had  made  notes  of 
every  living  thing  I  had  seen — bird  or  beast  or 
butterfly.  Now  it  was  my  task  to  set  to  work 
and  preserve  a  representative  collection  of  the 
fauna  of  Damagarim,  and  forge  one  link  in  the 
chain  of  the  zoological  geography  of  the  country, 
of  which  up  to  the  present  nothing  was  known. 


CHAPTER  IV 

A  day's  work  collecting 

Collecting  was  my  constant  occupation  during 
the  month  that  I  camped  and  hunted  near 
Zinder. 

Now,  collecting  Fauna  for  the  scientific  purposes 
of  large  Natural  History  Museums  is  work  some- 
what out  of  the  ordinary ;  so  much  so,  in  fact, 
that  I  would  like  to  show  clearly  what  such 
pursuits  entail,  and  to  do  this  will  endeavour  to 
describe  some  of  the  actual  work  in  the  field. 

To  begin  with,  the  climate  is  African  :  which 
means,  in  this  territory,  that  for  at  least  nine 
months  in  the  year  the  land  knows  not  rain,  and 
lies  like  an  overdone  pie-crust,  withering  beneath 
a  heat  that  is  too  great.  Day  after  day,  with 
unchecked  regularity,  from  the  break  of  dawn,  a 
fierce  sun  rises  rapidly  high  up  in  the  sky,  and  as 
it  gains  in  strength,  so  a  silence  settles  upon  the 
earth,  for  so  great  is  its  oppression,  that  at  the 
height  of  its  power  it  subdues  all  living  things. 
About  10  a.m.  you  may  notice  that  the  glad 
sounds  of  morning  have  faded — ^birds  are  retiring 
to  leafy  shades,  the  boisterous  noise  of  natives 
at  work  in  the  village  has  died  down ;  before 
noon  the  land  is  wrapped  in  silent  solitude,  and 
Old  Sol  alone  is  left  in  the  field. 

60 


THE  COOL  HOURS  61 

Hence  the  time  to  go  hunting  in  this  land  is 
early  in  the  morning  or  late  in  the  afternoon,  when 
the  creatures  of  the  underworld  have  left  their 
hiding-places  and  are  up  and  about  in  eager 
quest  of  feeding.  For  the  hunter  and  his  native 
boys  it  is  also  the  favoured  hour,  for,  as  in  travel- 
ling, the  cool  of  the  day  allows  of  the  maximum  of 
exertion  without  any  forfeit  of  sheer  exhaustion 
which  the  noonday  sun  inexorably  imposes. 

Let  us  follow  the  proceedings  of  a  morning's 
hunting.  I  have  turned  wakeful  toward  dawn, 
and  lie  warmly  in  my  blankets  awaiting  the  sound 
of  cock-crowing  to  tell  me  the  time,  for  I  am 
without  a  watch  since  the  sand  has  damaged  both 
I  possess.  When  I  hear  the  call  I  listen  for,  I 
know  full  well  I  must  bestir  myself  if  I  would  go 
away  to  the  fields  in  good  time.  Blankets  and 
bed  are  provokingly  comfortable  at  that  moment, 
but  it  is  fatal  to  hesitate,  so  I  call  "  John  !  "  and 
at  once  he  answers,  for  he  too  has  been  sleeping 
lightly  ;  and  while  I  am  dressing  he  lights  a  camp- 
fire  and  prepares  tea.  Sakari  and  Mona  are  also 
awakened,  and  sit,  with  their  coloured  blankets 
over  their  shoulders  and  drawn  about  them, 
huddled  before  the  few  embers  of  a  fire  that  they 
have  rekindled,  for  there  is  a  chill  in  the  air  and 
they  are  still  half  asleep  and  without  vigorous 
circulation. 

When  I  am  ready,  we  prepare  to  start.  My 
search  is  for  birds  this  morning,  so  I  take  '410 
shot-gun  for  collecting  small  specimens,  12 -bore 
shot-gun  for  anything  larger,  and  a  '22  Win- 
chester rifle  in  case  I  find  some  wary  bird  that  I 
cannot  get  within  gun-shot  of,  and  yet  may  see  it 


62  A   DAY'S    WORK    COLLECTING 

watchfully  perched  within  the  range  of  the  little 
rifle.  I  fill  my  pockets  with  cartridges  :  those 
for  the  '410  loaded  with  dust  for  sparrow-sized 
birds,  and  with  No.  8  for  birds  of  the  size  of  doves  ; 
while  I  carry  only  No.  6  in  the  cartridges  for  the 
12-bore  gun,  which  I  have  found  will  kill  vulture  or 
eagle  or  bustard — in  fact,  any  bird  less  than  an 
ostrich.  Also,  I  take  an  open  basket,  so  that  I  may 
carry  the  specimens  I  capture  with  great  care  and 
without  damage  to  the  plumage,  some  cotton  wool 
to  stop  bleeding  and  fill  wounds,  and  a  notebook 
in  which  to  record  the  colours  of  the  soft  parts 
before  they  fade  at  death — viz.  the  colour  of  the 
eyes,  the  bill,  and  the  feet. 

John  stays  behind  to  prepare  breakfast  and 
make  camp  clean  and  tidy  for  the  day  ;  Sakari 
and  Mona  come  with  me. 

I  know  where  I  will  go — I  keep  more  westerly 
than  yesterday.  We  go  carefully  at  first  over  the 
uneven  ground,  for  it  is  not  yet  light,  though  there 
is  now  a  faint  brightness  in  the  eastern  sky.  We 
are  well  away  from  camp,  and  cannot  see  it  when 
daylight  is  upon  us.  I  am  alert  now  that  the  sky 
has  cleared ;  eyes  roam  everywhere,  catching 
movement  in  the  undergrowth,  among  the  leaves 
of  big  trees,  or  in  the  sky.  Many  birds  I  see : 
little  brown  ones  like  the  undergrowth  or  ground  ; 
pale  ones  like  the  sand  ;  dark  ones  like  the  trees  ; 
or  gorgeous  ones  that  have  no  shy  colouring,  but 
are  gems  unto  themselves,  that  peep  out  brightly 
revealed  in  the  dark  background  of  their  leafy 
haunts.  I  know  them  all,  they  are  very  familiar 
— for  am  I  not  among  them  every  day  ?  I  am 
not  concerned  with  these  :   I  pass  on  ever  obser- 


A  MORNING  IN  THE   BUSH  68 

vant,  ever  expectant,  knowing  that  there  are 
others  that  I  will  find.  .  .  .  Soon  I  am  arrested  : 
I  have  heard  a  note  that  I  do  not  know — so  often 
I  am  guided  in  that  way.  I  go  forward  watchfully 
in  the  direction  of  the  sound.  ...  I  have  now 
marked  down  the  clump  of  bushes  whence  the 
call  proceeds.  ...  I  am  within  range  of  it — • 
when  I  see  a  long-tailed  bird  dive  from  it  and  dis- 
appear in  an  instant.  I  have  seen  that  it  is  a  Coly, 
but  not  of  a  race  I  know.  .  .  .  Pray  do  not  think 
I  have  lost  this  valuable  quarry,  though  it  has 
flown  and  is  out  of  sight.  Ah,  no  I  birds  that 
inhabit  a  favoured  thicket  are  unlikely  to  fly 
very  far,  especially  in  the  feeding  hours  of  morn- 
ing. So  I  pause  and  listen  attentively,  and  anon 
I  think  I  hear  the  tell-tale  somewhat  mournful 
single-pipe  call  of  the  bird  I  seek,  but  it  is  so  faint 
that  I  wonder  if  fancy  is  deluding  me.  There  is 
no  time  now  to  be  lost.  I  hasten  forward  among 
the  thorn  trees  that  in  a  belt  grow  numerously, 
and  the  pulse  quickens  as  I  again  hear  the  call 
for  certain,  and  from  more  than  one  bird.  ...  I 
feel  my  way  toward  the  sounds.  ...  I  am  not 
sure  of  the  direction  at  first,  but  as  I  draw  near 
there  is  no  doubt.  The  birds  are  ferreting  for 
leaf -buds  among  the  thick  tangle  in  the  centre  of 
a  thorn  tree  (acacia).  I  get  up  in  time  to  see  them 
dart  away,  and  succeed  in  shooting  one  specimen. 
But  that  is  not  enough,  for  the  species,  a  long- 
tailed  Coly,  with  a  blue  band  on  the  back  of  the 
head  (Colius  macrourus),  is  new  to  my  collection  ; 
I  must  follow  them  up.  So  I  hunt  on  for  an  hour 
or  so,  with  the  result  that  I  capture  four;  and 
it  has  been  an  exciting  chase,  for  the  birds  were 


64  A   DAY'S    WORK    COLLECTING 

peculiarly  wild,  though  they  are  of  a  kind  that  are 
often  easy  of  approach. 

I  am  very  warm,  and  stand  beside  a  tree  to 
smoke  a  soothing  cigarette.  I  have  seen  a  num- 
ber of  hawks  in  the  air  during  the  morning ;  now 
that  I  am  idling  in  the  shade  I  see  another.  It  is 
of  a  species  that  I  have  observed  before,  but  that 
I  have  never  been  able  to  approach — a  very  large 
hawk,  of  even  dark  leaden-grey  colour,  with 
mighty  wings  and  a  crested  head.  The  bird  swings 
slowly  over  the  land  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
away,  and  I  give  up  following  it,  and  drop  my 
eyes  to  look  about  nearer  at  hand. 

I  had  forgotten  the  incident,  when  Sakari 
aroused  me  with :  "  White  man,  dem  shafo 
(hawk)  live  for  tree — ^look  him  I  "  and  he  pointed 
away  to  a  small  group  of  tallish  trees  on  our 
right.  Sure  enough,  following  Sakari's  direc- 
tions, I  could  make  out  the  outline  of  a  heavy 
bird  perched  near  the  top  of  one  of  the  trees, 
whence  it  overlooked  the  whole  country- 
side. The  native  had  watched  it  fly  and  settle 
there. 

Now  began  a  stalk  as  exciting  as  one  could 
wish  for.  I  always  look  on  birds  of  prey,  the 
hawks  and  the  eagles,  as  royal  game,  and  feel 
about  the  same  intense  interest  in  hunting  a  wild 
species  of  them  as  I  do  when  stalking  a  particu- 
larly fine  head  of  big-game.  Between  me  and  my 
prey  there  was  hardly  any  tree  cover.  I  could 
only  trust  to  using  the  "  lie  "  of  the  hollows  to 
reach  the  bird  unobserved  or  at  least  unsuspected. 
I  ordered  the  two  natives  to  remain  where  they 
were,  while  I  took  my  shot-gun  and  started  on  a 


STALKING  RARE  SPECIES  65 

wide  detour,  so  that  I  might  reach  a  little  dry 
streamlet  hollow  that  led  in  toward  the  trees. 
Rapidly,  but  carefully,  after  I  had  got  round  into 
position,  I  advanced,  crouching  and  creeping, 
toward  the  bird ;  and  always  when  I  dared  to 
glance  ahead  I  saw  my  coveted  quarry  perched 
in  place  and  unalarmed.  When  I  drew  closer  I 
could  distinguish  the  eyes  and  hooked  beak,  and 
saw  that  the  bird  was  watchful,  for  it  turned  its 
head  in  one  direction  and  then  in  another  as  it 
looked  out  over  the  landscape.  .  .  .  Now  I  was 
crawling  flatwise,  bare  bruised  knees  and  all, 
and  before  long  stood  breathless  among  the  trees 
— ^the  bird  somewhere  overhead.  As  I  moved  to 
get  a  better  view  through  the  branches,  the  bird 
swooped  from  its  perch  to  make  off ;  and  then 
crumpled  up  in  mid-air  as  the  report  of  my  gun 
rang  out.  Seldom  have  I  been  more  satisfied  with 
the  sound  of  the  fall  of  a  heavy  bird  ;  for  many  a 
like  stalk  have  I  made  after  equally  rare  prize, 
only  to  find  the  sharp-eyed  quarry  depart  when  I 
was  half-way  on  my  journey,  or  sometimes  when 
almost  within  shooting  range. 

The  natives  soon  joined  me,  and  having  now 
enough  specimens  for  the  work  of  the  day,  we 
turned  back  to  camp. 

On  the  way  home  I  had  two  fox-traps  to  visit 
and  lift,  for  it  is  not  safe  to  leave  them  set  during 
daylight,  lest  browsing  goat  or  village  cur  stumble 
into  them.  The  luck  of  the  morning  continued, 
for  in  the  second  trap  there  was  a  struggling 
captive — a.  beautiful  buff  sand-coloured  little  fox 
known  as  Vulpes  pallida  edwardsi. 

This  capture  afforded  the  two  natives  great 


66  A   DAY'S    WORK    COLLECTING 

satisfaction,  and,  as  is  their  habit,  they  showed 
fiendish  glee  over  the  downfall  of  this  creature  of 
renowned  wit  and  cunning.  If  they  were  not 
restrained  by  my  presence,  I  know  they  would 
poke  it  with  sticks  and  jeer  at  it,  and  in  many 
ways  act  with  unconscious  cruelty,  for  they  have 
not  an  atom  of  pity  for  such  things — ^no  African 
has.  If  they  were  free  to  kill  the  fox,  they  would 
secure  the  teeth  and  the  eyes  and  the  skin  to 
secrete  the  parts  about  their  persons  as  charms  in 
the  firm  belief  that  they  thus  invest  themselves 
with  the  high  gifts  of  the  animal  against  the 
cunning  of  their  opponents  or  enemies. 

Thus  finished  a  morning's  hunting.  Sometimes, 
on  other  days,  I  would  meet  with  greater  success, 
sometimes  with  less ;  and  sometimes,  too,  I 
would  have  my  days  of  disappointment,  when  a 
rarity  was  seen  and  lost  through  a  missed  shot  or 
in  losing  all  traces  of  it  in  its  flight.  But  the 
hunter  does  not  readily  forget,  and  naturally 
memorises  a  place  where  he  has  once  found 
quarry,  so  that  again  and  again  he  will  revisit  it, 
and  often  picks  up  on  a  later  day  that  which  has 
escaped  him  at  the  start. 

There  were  few  big-game  in'  the  district,  and, 
in  my  case,  for  the  present,  it  was  not  my  concern 
to  hunt  them,  except  that  I  might  have  fresh 
meat. 

But  in  addition  to  ornithological  research,  I 
was  interested  in  collecting  all  kinds  of  small 
mammals,  and  as  few  indeed  were  ever  seen  in 
daylight,  I  had  to  resort  almost  altogether  to  steel 
traps  to  make  my  captures,  and  had  mouse-traps, 
rat-traps,  rabbit-traps,  and  fox-traps  set  at  nights 


PROCESS  OF  SKINNING  ANIMALS         67 

wherever  I  found  an  inhabited  burrow  or  den 
or  a  frequented  "  run." 

Furthermore  I  had  yet  other  matters  to  give 
thought  to,  for  I  was  to  bring  home  collections  of 
Lepidopterae,  which  entailed  long  excursions  in  the 
heat  of  the  day  in  quest  of  butterflies,  and  patience- 
trying  hours  of  watching  by  a  lamp-lure  in  the 
darkness  of  night  in  quest  of  moths. 

Altogether,  I  can  assure  you  I  had  no  time  to 
weary  for  companionship  or  to  realise  my  loneli- 
ness, and  that  was  a  comforting  consideration. 

I  have  described  the  manner  of  hunting  speci- 
mens, and  would  now  turn  to  the  work  of  preserv- 
ing them. 

I  have  built  a  rough-framed  grass  hut  for  work- 
shop, close  to  my  tent.  When  I  return  in  the 
morning,  it  is  here  that  the  specimens  are  taken, 
and  work  is  begun  at  once,  for  the  temperature 
is  so  great  that  a  lifeless  carcass  cannot  be  relied 
on  to  keep  fresh  longer  than  five  hours,  and  will 
certainly  be  beyond  handling  if  left  to  the  end  of 
the  day.  I  usually  preserve  from  five  to  ten 
specimens  in  a  day,  the  number  depending  on 
size  or  the  success  of  hunting ;  while  on  special 
occasions  I  have  finished  as  many  as  fifteen  in  a 
day. 

Sakari  and  Mona,  the  boys  selected  at  Lagos 
and  Kano  to  help  in  skinning  specimens,  can  now 
be  trusted  with  certain  work.  The  fox  had  been 
put  out  of  pain,  and,  laying  it  on  its  back,  I  make 
the  opening  cut  in  it  and  start  Sakari  on  the  task 
of  skinning.  As  he  proceeds  to  work  the  skin  off, 
from  the  belly  upwards,  the  limbs  are  drawn 
inside  and  severed  at  the  heel  of  the  paws,  the 


68  A   DAY'S    WORK    COLLECTING 

tail  is  pulled  out  by  the  root,  and  in  time  the  skin 
is  clear  of  the  body  and  drawn  off  over  the  neck 
and  head.  The  limbs  are  then  labelled  :  "  right 
fore,"  "left  fore,"  "right  hind,"  and  "left 
hind,"  and  are  severed  from  the  carcass  at  the 
hip  and  shoulder  joints,  and,  along  with  the  skull, 
are  scraped  clean  of  flesh  and  numbered  and  laid 
aside  to  go  with  the  finished  skin  of  the  specimen. 
All  the  scraps  of  flesh  and  fatty  matter  are  then 
removed  from  the  skin,  and  I  take  it  over  from 
Sakari  to  apply  a  thorough  coating  of  arsenical 
soap  preservative,  when  it  is  labelled  and  com- 
pleted, and  laid  aside  to  dry.  It  has  taken  Sakari 
about  an  hour  and  a  half  to  do  the  work,  and 
when  he  is  finished  I  set  him  to  partly  skin  the 
smaller  birds,  for  he  is  light-fingered  and  has 
considerable  skill. 

Mona,  meantime,  is  set  to  work  on  the  large 
hawk,  which  proved  to  be  the  Banded  Gymnogene 
(Gymnogenys  typica).  A  smaller  bird  may  have 
the  wings  severed  at  the  shoulder  of  the  carcass 
as  the  skinning  progresses  and  the  bones  drawn 
inside  to  be  cleaned  of  flesh  and  returned  into 
position,  but  with  a  very  large  bird  such  pro- 
cedure is  impossible,  and  the  wings  must  be  dealt 
with  separately.  So  I  stretch  one  of  the  great 
wings  to  full  expansion,  and  on  the  underside 
make  a  cut  along  the  full  length  of  it.  Mona  then 
proceeds  to  part  the  skin  from  flesh  and  bone,  so 
that  when  the  skin  is  fully  released  above  and 
below  the  limb,  he  can  remove  all  flesh.  When  one 
wing  is  complete,  and  the  bones  white  and  clean, 
he  proceeds  with  the  other.  Now  the  main  body 
may  be  dealt  with,  and  a  cut  is  made  from  the 


PROCESS  OF  SKINNING  BIRDS  69 

top  of  the  breast-bone  to  the  tail,  and  the  work 
of  skinning  continues,  always  using  maize-meal 
as  well  as  scalpel  in  removing  the  skin,  for  the 
former  is  invaluable  for  absorbing  all  moisture, 
such  as  saliva,  blood,  and  grease,  as  the  skin  is 
parted  from  the  flesh,  and  safeguards  all  danger 
of  soiling  the  plumage.  From  the  inside  the  legs 
are  severed  from  the  body  at  the  top  of  the  thigh, 
and  the  tail  at  the  base  of  the  big  quills,  and 
Mona  proceeds  with  removing  the  skin  from  the 
body — ^for  later  the  legs  may  be  returned  to,  the 
skin  peeled  down  as  far  as  it  will  go,  and  the  flesh 
cleaned  from  the  bones.  Soon  he  reaches  the 
shoulders,  and  breaks  off  the  wing-bones  close  to 
the  body,  and  works  the  skin,  which  is  now  freed 
from  the  body  carcass,  slowly  up  the  neck  and 
over  the  skull ;  the  neck  is  then  cut  off  at  the  base 
of  the  skull  and  the  carcass  thrown  away.  The 
skull  is  carefully  cleaned  and  remains  in  the  skin 
attached  to  the  bill.  When  the  limbs  and  skin 
are  all  thoroughly  cleaned,  Mona's  work  is  finished, 
for  so  far  can  I  trust  him  to  go,  but  no  further. 
He  has  taken  fully  two  hours  over  the  work,  and  he 
has  nothing  else  to  do  for  the  time  being,  since  he 
is  not  yet  sufficiently  skilled  to  skin  the  smaller 
things.  I  now  take  the  hawk  skin  from  Mona 
and  thoroughly  anoint  the  skull  and  neck  with 
preservative  soap,  fill  the  eye-sockets  with  globular 
balls  of  cotton  wool,  to  take  the  place  of  the  live 
eye,  and  pass  the  head  back  through  the  neck 
into  its  normal  position  ;  I  then  soap  all  the 
remainder  of  the  skin,  and  place  a  thin  layer  of 
cotton-wool  over  the  damp  surface  as  I  go  along 
to  keep  the  feathers  from  becoming  soiled  should 


70  A   DAY'S    WORK   COLLECTING 

they  turn  over  skinwards  as  they  often  do.  When 
that  is  done,  the  bird  is  completely  preserved ; 
but  still  it  has  to  be  reformed,  so  that  it  will  dry 
in  a  perfectly  natural  outstretched  posture.  With 
this  intention  I  first  take  needle  and  strong  thread, 
and  where  I  see  the  base  of  the  scapular  feathers 
showing  on  the  inside  of  the  skin,  on  either  side, 
I  pass  the  thread  through  each,  and  tie  it  so  that  in 
doing  so  the  shoulders  are  brought  together — a 
trick  that  greatly  assists  in  bringing  the  wing  butts 
back  into  their  normal  place.  Next  I  cut  a  stout 
straight  stick  or  rod  of  the  length  of  the  bird,  and 
point  both  ends.  Upon  the  upper  length  of  this 
I  wrap  sufficient  wool  to  fill  the  neck,  and  when 
that  is  done,  it  is  carefully  inserted  in  the  neck- 
skin  and  the  point  of  the  stick  forced  up  into 
the  base  of  the  bill,  while  the  other  end  is  fixed 
into  the  root  of  the  tail.  The  bird-skin  is  now 
lying,  back-downwards,  with  a  straight  firm  rod 
running  down  the  centre  of  it ;  round  this  rod 
I  commence  to  build  the  woollen  filling,  until 
a  form  is  shaped  of  the  size  of  the  carcass.  I 
then  see  that  the  base  of  the  wing-bones  and  leg- 
bones  are  nicely  set  close  into  the  body,  and,  that 
done,  draw  the  skin  over  the  breast  into  its 
original  position,  and  hold  it  in  place  with  a  few 
stitches  ;  and  the  bird  is  ready  to  pick  up  and  have 
the  feathers  rearranged  with  such  care  that  no 
one  may  suspect  that  it  has  ever  been  tampered 
with — work  that  requires  a  distressing  amount  of 
patience  if  you  desire  a  beautiful  specimen. 
When  every  feather  is  in  place,  the  specimen  is 
laid  in  a  coffin-shaped  mould  *  of  correct  width  to 

♦  Made  of  pasteboard  for  small  specimens  and  wood  for  large. 


FINISHING  SPECIMENS  71 

hold  the  wings  in  place  close  to  the  body,  and  it  is 
then  set  aside  to  dry.  When  quite  dry,  the  speci- 
men is  perfectly  rigid,  and  requires  no  further 
support,  and  may  be  handled  freely. 

Small  birds  are  treated  in  the  same  way,  except 
that  there  is  no  difficulty  with  the  wings,  but  the 
work  is  much  more  dainty,  and  requires  light 
fingers  and  a  great  store  of  patience. 

Some  birds,  such  as  ducks  and  night-jars,  can- 
not be  skinned  by  bringing  the  neck  over  the 
head,  as  the  latter  is  too  large  ;  in  such  cases  an 
incision  is  made  in  the  back  of  the  head  and  the 
skull  worked  out  through  it. 

Meantime,  while  the  natives  have  been  employed 
with  fox  and  hawk,  I  have  worked  on  the  small 
birds  (the  Colics),  so  that  by  mid-afternoon  all 
are  finished  and  laid  aside  to  dry,  with  sufficient 
camphor  sprinkled  over  them  to  keep  ants  from 
attacking  the  soft  parts  of  the  head.  I  am  then 
free  to  set  out  on  another  search  for  specimens 
or  to  employ  my  time  in  setting  traps.  If  I 
collect  in  the  cool  of  the  evening,  I  keep  speci- 
mens overnight,  which  can  be  done  without  fear 
of  decay,  and  start  skinning  them  at  daybreak 
on  the  following  morning. 

My  description  will,  I  trust,  illustrate  something 
of  the  process  employed  with  specimens  collected 
and  preserved  in  the  field.  You  may  already 
know  them  if  you  have  been  "  behind  the  scenes  " 
in  an  important  museum,  and  have  seen  the 
wealth  of  research  specimens  that  are  there, 
carefully  stored  away  from  the  strong  rays  of 
daylight  so  that  their  colour  shall  not  fade. 
Drawer  upon  drawer  of  different  species,  all  uni- 


72  A   DAY'S    WORK   COLLECTING 

form  in  shape  and  labelled  for  the  purpose :  the 
Type  specimens  from  the  locality  where  the 
species  was  first  discovered,  and  specimens  from 
any  other  part  of  the  world  where  it  has  since 
been  found  to  exist ;  many  rare  and  immensely 
valuable  ;  many  the  absolute  proof  of  vastly  im- 
portant records  that  have  gone  to  establish  the 
Natural  History  of  the  world,  and  valuable  as 
the  parchments  of  the  historian  or  the  relics  of 
the  antiquarian.  There  you  may  actually  see 
how  the  collector  makes  up  his  skins  in  the  field, 
and  why  they  are  made,  and  how  the  peoples  of 
the  world  come  to  know  all  the  creatures  that 
inhabit  it. 


CHAPTER  V 

ZINDER 

ZiNDER  is  a  very  strange  town  :  strange  because 
of  its  great  size  in  so  isolated  a  position  ;  strange 
because  of  the  nature  of  its  site  and  old-world 
obsolete  composition. 

Kano,  though  it  is  the  commercial  metropolis 
of  the  Western  Sudan,  is  first  and  foremost  the 
capital  of  the  province  of  the  same  name  by  reason 
of  its  large  population  and  importance ;  and  in 
like  manner  so  we  find  Zinder,  the  capital  of 
Damagarim,  vastly  larger  than  any  fellow- village 
in  the  territory — a  unique  and  imposing  place, 
lost  in  a  wilderness  of  great  spaces  and  little 
peoples. 

It  is  difficult  to  give  those  "  back  home  "  a 
fair  conception  of  the  solitude  of  Zinder.  But 
let  us  suppose  for  the  moment  that  England  and 
Scotland  are  wilderness — ^without  "  made  "  roads, 
without  mason-built  houses  or  cottages — and  all 
England  covered  with  scrub-wood  of  a  great  same- 
ness, wherein,  concealed  among  the  foliage,  a  few 
natives  have  settlements  of  primeval  gipsy  kind, 
while  Scotland,  we  picture,  in  fancy,  as  a  moun- 
tain-land of  barren  rock,  with  lowlands  of  desert 
sand,  and  almost  no  inhabitants  at  all. 
7  73 


74  ZINDER 

Zinder  is  140  miles  from  Kano,  and  Agades,  at 
the  southern  foot  of  the  Air  mountains — and  the 
only  other  old-world  town  on  my  route — is  257 
miles  north  of  Zinder.  Suppose  we  take  London 
to  represent  Kano,  and  set  out  to  walk  with  a 
caravan  of  loaded  camels  toward  the  north  of 
England.  Days  pass,  and  we  see  a  few  gipsy- 
constructed  villages  by  the  wayside — nothing 
more  ;  but  when  we  approach  Sheffield,  we  are 
surprised  to  see  a  large  fortified  town  appear 
before  us,  in  the  distance,  standing  in  the  great 
wilderness  alone.  This  we  can  take  to  represent 
Zinder,  for  from  London  to  Sheffield  is  about 
equidistant  as  from  Kano  to  Zinder.  If  you 
would  continue  the  journey  as  far  as  Edinburgh 
or  Glasgow,  you  should  imagine  that  you  have 
passed  from  the  scrub-wooded  land  into  desert, 
and  that  either  of  those  Scottish  towns  may  repre- 
sent Agades,  for  from  Sheffield  to  Edinburgh  is 
about  equidistant  as  from  Zinder  to  Agades. 
Therefore,  to  realise  the  solitude  of  Zinder,  you 
require  to  imagine  that  Sheffield  stands  alone  in 
her  dignity  in  all  the  land  between  London  and 
Edinburgh ;  and  if  you  would  picture  even 
greater  solitude,  such  as  invests  isolated  Agades, 
you  may  imagine  Edinburgh  as  a  straggling  town, 
not  large,  but  steeped  in  ancient  history,  and  that 
it  is  the  only  town  in  the  length  and  breadth  of 
Scotland,  the  earth's  surface  of  which  we  have 
imagined  to  be  barren  as  sea-shore  which  the  tide 
has  left,  and  containing  but  a  mere  handful  of 
inhabitants.  By  such  comparisons,  by  likening 
with  bold  sweeps  of  the  brush  the  home  geography 
to  that  in  the  territories  of  Kano,  Damagarim, 


A  COMPARISON  OF  DISTANCES  75 

Damergou,  and  Air,  we  arrive  at  the  conclusion 
that  there  would  only  be  three  towns  throughout 
the  length  of  England  and  Scotland,  which  we 
have  called  London,  Sheffield,  and  Edinburgh  for 
convenience  of  comparative  distance  at  which 
they  are  set  apart,  and  nothing  intervening 
excepting  a  number  of  diminutive  hut-villages  of 
natives  among  the  scrub-wood  of  the  land.  By 
this  time,  if  your  imagination  has  run  free,  you 
have  shovelled  the  countless  towns  on  the  map 
of  England,  Scotland,  and  Wales  into  the  sea,  so 
that  you  have  just  the  three  you  require  and  the 
requisite  solitude  surrounding  them.  But  that 
is  not  all  you  do  :  trains  must  vanish,  and  ships 
that  visit  your  shores,  and  the  ocean  around  you 
shall  be  deserted,  and  no  strangers  shall  come  to 
the  land.  .  .  .  Then  is  the  picture  of  Solitude 
such  as  it  is  in  the  Western  Sudan  drawn  to 
completion,  and  you  may  realise  something 
of  the  ever-present  weight  of  seclusion  that 
hangs  over  ill-fated  places  that  lie  remotely 
out  of  the  world  and  seem  to  soliloquise  of 
Eternity,  since  they  are  so  much  alone  and  so 
near  to  the  earth. 

"  Ah,  it  is  a  sad  land  I  "  is  an  exclamation  I 
have  oftentimes  heard  escape  from  the  lips  of 
Frenchmen  who  hold  appointments  in  the  country, 
for  their  vivacious  natures  feel  most  keenly  the 
solitude  of  the  barren  land  which  envelops  them 
with  a  grimness  akin  to  the  bare  walls  of  a  prison, 
and  holds  out  no  hope  of  escape  until  the  date  of 
release  decreed,  the  while  many  a  homesick  heart 
has  passionate  longing  for  freedom  of  expression 
in  convivial  and  comprehensive  surroundings.     I 


76  ZINDER 

have  been  informed  by  officers  that  the  depression 
of  sohtude  —no  doubt  combined  with  the  unnerv- 
ing influence  of  malaria — ^is  so  great,  that  some 
men  cannot  stand  it,  and  have  to  be  prematurely 
sent  from  the  territory  in  a  state  of  total  mental 
collapse  ;  especially  is  this  the  case,  it  is  asserted, 
among  the  N.C.O.s,  who  have  naturally  a 
narrower  field  of  interest  outside  their  military 
duties  than  the  officers. 

Zinder,  like  Kano,  is  surrounded  with  great 
earthen  walls  of  similar  height  and  strength, 
and  they  are  so  prominent  that  they  may  be 
sighted  at  a  long  distance  off,  whether  you  ap- 
proach the  place  from  the  south  or  the  north,  for 
the  nature  of  the  landscape  is  such  that  you 
descend  to  Zinder  (altitude  1,640  ft.)  from  the 
south,  and  look  on  its  imposing  bulwarks  when- 
ever you  top  a  distant  ridge  which  lies  about  two 
miles  away  ;  while  you  ascend  to  it  from  the  north, 
where,  perched  on  the  crown  of  a  rocky  ridge,  it 
has  the  pleasing  appearance  of  a  fortified  castle. 
Kano  has  no  view  equal  to  this  northern  aspect 
of  Zinder,  which  is  of  charming  outline,  and 
which  looks  particularly  picturesque  in  the  shades 
of  evening,  and  fantastic  in  the  moonlight,  for 
then  are  the  barren,  unsympathetic  surroundings 
almost  forgotten  under  the  softening  influence 
of  night's  enchantment. 

The  site  upon  which  Zinder  stands  is  a  curious 
one,  insomuch  that  it  is  on  a  rising  grade,  which 
extends  to  the  upper  or  most  northern  section  of 
the  town,  which  is  on  a  low-rugged  ridge  extra- 
ordinary for  the  outcrop  of  giant  boulders  thereon, 
some  of  them  many  times  the  height  of  man,  and 


NATIVES    DRAWING    WATER    AT    BABAK    TUBKI    WELLS,    /INDEH. 


AMONG    THE    ROCK>    (il     ZINDER, 


76] 


THE  NATIVE  QUARTER  77 

lending  an  uncommon  character  to  the  sur- 
roundings of  the  habitations.  The  huts  are  built 
of  clay-soil  in  the  same  manner  as  at  Kano,  for 
the  community  is,  as  there,  largely  Hausa,  but 
the  town  in  general,  since  it  is  smaller,  is  less 
bewildering  in  its  narrow  street-lanes,  while  there 
are  markedly  fewer  inhabitants  and  less  commo- 
tion. There  is  a  circumstance  in  Zinder  which  is 
sad  to  relate  :  many  of  the  dwellings  are  forsaken, 
and  stand  to-day  in  disrepair  or  in  ruins,  and  a 
certain  melancholy  atmosphere  of  decline  is  there. 
Doubtless  there  are  many  causes  for  this  de- 
cline, but  those  that  are  apparent  and  presently 
prominent  are:  firstly,  that  the  lure  of  the 
rapidly  ascending  prosperity  of  industries  and 
commerce  of  Kano  has  influenced  many  to 
desert  the  old  town  and  go  to  settle  in  the 
great  metropolis;  and,  secondly,  that  jurisdic- 
tion under  military  rule  would  appear  to  contain 
some  element  that  is  irksome  to  a  certain 
number  of  natives,  and  so  those  who  are  not 
content,  depart  from  under  the  immediate  eyes 
of  the  administrative  to  seek,  perhaps,  a  greater 
freedom  in  some  distant  bush-village,  or  in  Hausa- 
land  in  Nigeria.  Natives  of  primitive  environ- 
ment are  very  easily  influenced,  and  the  act  of 
changing  abode  an  undertaking  of  small  conse- 
quence, so  that  once  a  movement  commences, 
others  quickly  follow  the  example  of  the  leaders. 
My  boys,  Sakari  and  John,  I  fancy,  expressed 
something  of  popular  Hausa  opinion  when  they 
quaintly  proffered  the  conviction  that  "  Kano 
is  sweet  past  Zinder." 

On  the  high  ground  just  outside  the  western 


78  ZINDER 

walls  of  Zinder  there  has  sprung  up,  since  the 
date  of  French  occupation  in  1900,  an  exten- 
sive European  cantonment  which  is  altogether 
modern  and  in  strange  contrast  to  the  old  town, 
to  which  it  is  distinctly  foreign.  Herein  are  the 
headquarters  of  the  military  administration  of 
the  Territoire  Militaire  du  Niger.  Here,  laid  out 
on  broad  lines,  there  are  spacious  buildings  of 
creditable  French  colonial  design — ^long  flat-roofed, 
one-story  bungalows  in  type,  with  pleasant  balus- 
trades that  shelter  cool  verandas.  The  thick 
walls  of  the  buildings  are  constructed  by  natives, 
with  bricks  which  are  baked  with  clay  mud, 
obtained,  strangely  enough,  by  breaking  into  the 
ancient  wall  fortifications  of  Zinder,  and  kneaded, 
with  the  addition  of  fibrous  straw,  and  baked  or 
dried  in  the  blazing  sun.  The  domestic  quarters 
or  the  administrative  offices  within  the  bungalows 
are  delightfully  cool,  and  it  is  pleasant  indeed  to 
have  occasion  to  go  inside  out  of  reach  of  the  hot 
sun  of  day  which  strikes  down  perpetually  and 
without  mercy  on  the  scorched,  expressionless 
sand  of  bare  streets  and  compounds.  (In  the 
month  of  February  the  thermometer  registers 
about  80°  Fahr.  in  the  shade  at  8  a.m.,  and  about 
100°  Fahr.  at  noon,  although  the  hottest  season 
is  not  reached  until  June  and  July.)  The  canton- 
ment, which  might  almost  be  called  a  town 
within  itself,  is  unique  in  the  territory,  there 
being  nothing  but  outlying  forts  to  compare  with 
it ;  indeed,  if  we  go  outside  it,  not  even  the  segre- 
gation at  Kano,  which  contains  about  an  equal 
number  of  Europeans,  can  compare,  in  my  opinion, 
with    the    general    planning    and    architectural 


THE  EUROPEAN  QUARTER  79 

appearance  of  Zinder.  Which  may  be  due  to 
the  fact  that  Kano  is  principally  a  township  of 
trading  stores,  with  domestic  quarters  overhead, 
whereas  at  Zinder  there  is  not  a  shop  in  the 
place,  and  all  the  buildings  are  laid  out  on  a 
well- conceived  plan  to  accommodate  the  military 
administration,  with  due  consideration  to  comfort 
and  their  exalted  rank. 

For  the  white  traveller  to  come  unawares  upon 
the  imposing  buildings  of  Zinder,  in  such  isolated 
surroundings,  is  naturally  a  great  surprise,  and  a 
totally  unexpected  pleasure ;  and  to  the  natives 
who  arrive  from  the  distant  bush,  or  stop  in  the 
passing  of  their  caravans,  they  must  be  a  constant 
source  of  wonder. 

In  Zinder  or  in  Kano,  or,  in  fact,  anywhere 
south  of  Air,  you  never  hear  "  Zinder  "  given  its 
official  name,  for,  without  exception,  it  is  spoken 
of  among  the  Hausa  people  under  the  designation 
of  "  Damagarim."  Their  explanation  is  that  the 
name  "  Zinder  "  is  not  of  Hausa  origin,  but  is  an 
old  Arabic  or  Tamashack  name  belonging  to 
ancient  rulers  of  northern  race  whose  tribes  have 
long  ago  been  driven  back,  though  the  name  still 
remains  in  use  among  the  Semitic  races  in  Air  and 
other  distant  places  on  the  old  caravan  routes  to 
Tripoli  and  Algeria. 

Zinder  came  under  French  rule  in  1900. 

It  was  in  1898  that  large  military  missions  were 
organised  with  the  purpose  of  entering  and 
occupying  the  country  now  known  as  the  Terri- 
toire  Militaire  du  Niger  in  the  Western  Sudan. 
The  project  was  supported  by  a  treaty  between 
Britain  and  France  which  had  been  agreed  on  and 


80  ZINDER 

signed  in  1890 — eight  years  before  the  undertaking 
was  actually  set  afoot. 

There  was,  in  all,  three  separate  missions, 
which  started  from  Algeria,  from  the  Niger 
river,  and  the  Congo  of  French  Equatorial 
Africa ;  and  the  scheme  was  that  all  would 
converge  on  Lake  Chad,  which  was  to  be  the 
rendezvous  should  each  column  meet  with  suc- 
cess. An  object  ultimately  attained — and  the 
Territoire  Militaire  was  created  in  1900,  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  a  commandant,  with  head- 
quarters established  at  Zinder.  In  1901  a 
second  mission  was  organised  to  stabilise  the 
position,  and  this  mission  was  a  powerful  one 
in  strength  of  arms,  so  that  an  imposing  and 
awesome  impression  should  be  made  on  the  minds 
of  any  disaffected  native  inhabitants,  should  such 
be  encountered.  During  that  year  complete  occu- 
pation of  the  Damagarim  Region  was  peacefully 
carried  out. 

Below  are  statistics  kindly  furnished  by  the 
commandant,  in  September,  1920,  of  the  native 
population  in  the  region  known  as  Damagarim, 
of  which  Zinder  is  the  capital : — 

Hausa 116,104 

Beri-Beri 33,680 

Fulani 5,969 

Tuareg 1,520 

Bellahs  (Captive  slaves  and  their  descend- 
ants, of  no  caste)       ....  4,564 

Total  Native  Population         .         .         .    161,837 


It  will  be  seen  that  the  Hausa  race  predomi- 
nates, but  the  northern  quarter  of  this  region  is 


FRENCH  OCCUPATION  OF  DAMAGARIM    81 

near  to  the  limit  of  their  range,  for  they  extend 
but  little  farther  into  the  Damergou  region,  where 
they  are  only  twenty -three  thousand  all  told ; 
and  those  principally  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Tanout. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  SHORES  OF  BUSHLAND  AND  DESERT 

Toward  the  end  of  February  I  left  Zinder. 

Takoukout,  109  miles  farther  on,  was  to  be  my 
next  camping-place. 

Before  leaving  Zinder  I  heard  plenty  of  dis- 
couraging news  of  the  journey  confronting  me  : 
exploits  of  armed  robbers  and  great  scarcity  of 
food  were  freely  spoken  of,  by  both  Europeans 
and  natives,  as  existing  drawbacks  to  visiting  Air  ; 
and  I  began  to  note  that  my  Hausa  boys  were 
growing  restive  and  suspicious  of  what  lay  ahead. 
In  fact,  in  the  end  those  fearsome  but  idle  rumours 
unsettled  and  unnerved  Mona  to  such  an  extent 
that,  when  the  time  drew  near  to  go  forward,  I 
decided  to  send  him  back  to  Kano,  deeming  it 
useless  to  take  him  further  in  such  a  state  of  mind. 
Sakari  was  little  better,  but  he  was  so  helpful  in 
skinning,  that  I  was  loath  to  let  him  go,  and  by 
the  aid  of  increased  wages  was  able  to  induce  him 
to  continue. 

It  was  the  old  familiar  trouble,  for  I  have 
always  found  it  difficult  to  induce  natives,  most 
of  whom  appear  to  have  a  strong  erratical  and 
unreliable  temperament  in  their  composition,  to 
leave  their  homes  on  a  long  journey,  and,  when 

82 


THE  THREAT  OF  HUNGER  88 

possibilities  of  hunger  and  danger  are  added, 
trouble  may  be  anticipated  after  the  undertaking 
has  commenced,  no  matter  how  auspicious  the 
start,  nor  how  binding  the  promises,  which 
were  perfectly  sincere  at  the  time  they  were 
made. 

For  my  own  part  I  had  often  puzzled  over  the 
question  :  "  Why  is  it  that  Air  has  so  long  been 
avoided  by  naturalists  and  travellers  ?  "  for,  so  far 
as  I  could  gather,  no  one  had  explored  the  country 
in  British  interests  since  Dr.  Earth's  geological  and 
anti-slave  trade  mission  to  Central  Africa  in  1850 
— seventy  years  ago ;  but  now  I  believed  I  had  a 
cue,  for  hunger  and  danger  are  indeed  companions 
of  ill-omen  sufficiently  gruesome  to  warn  away  the 
wise — provided  they  are  altogether  without  some 
opposite  neighbours  to  stand  by  in  time  of  stress 
and  modify  the  fearsome  picture.  But  of  this 
more  anon. 

It  may  be  said  that  in  leaving  Zinder,  north- 
ward bound,  one  passes  out  into  true  Sahara 
and  true  wilderness.  Henceforward  the  break-up 
of  the  natural  bushland  sets  in,  and  wide  belts  of 
sand  desert  and  dwarf  bush  alternate,  until  the 
vast  sea  of  sand-plain  is  reached  about  180  miles 
north  of  Zinder.  Henceforward,  also,  the  nature 
of  the  country  undergoes  change ;  it  is  more 
barren  than  before,  which  is  reflected  at  once  in 
the  tremendous  drop  in  population  which  occurs 
in  the  region  or  province  of  Damergou  ;  and  it  is 
reflected,  also,  in  the  dwarf  stature  of  the  ill- 
nourished  acacia  trees,  which,  by  the  way, 
remind  me  much  of  the  dying-down  of  the  timber 
forests  of  Canada  to  the  dwarf  Scrub  Pine  on  the 


84  BUSHLAND    AND    DESERT 

shores  of  the  sub-Arctic  barren  grounds.  How 
strikingly  similar  are  those  two  instances  of  land- 
locked shores,  that  are  boundary  between  bush- 
land  and  desert  or  plain,  though  they  take  effect 
in  continents  widely  separated,  and  of  entirely 
different  climatic  conditions  !  In  both  cases  the 
trees  are  ill-thriven  and  dwarfed,  but  there  is  a 
difference  :  in  the  Sudan  the  cause  is  to  be  found 
in  the  unfertile  sand  and  lack  of  moisture,  while 
in  Canada  it  is  the  severity  of  the  winter  in  that 
particular  latitude  which  lays  its  blight  upon  the 
land. 

Then,  too,  as  you  enter  wilderness  and  land  of 
diminished  population,  you  pass  into  country 
that  is  poorer  in  bird  life,  but  richer  by  far  in  big- 
game  than  any  territory  to  the  south — as  shall  be 
seen  as  we  progress. 

The  village  of  Tanout,  85  miles  distant,  lay 
across  our  path  to  Takoukout,  and  I  set  out  with 
the  intention  of  covering  the  distance  in  five  days, 
which  meant  fairly  stiff  going  for  the  well-loaded 
camels.  As  customary,  we  had  the  usual  trouble 
with  certain  animals  and  their  burdens  on  the 
first  day  out  from  Zinder,  and  were  on  the  road, 
without  pause  for  rest,  from  7  a.m.  till  4  p.m., 
when  we  reached  Bakimaran  after  a  journey  of 
18  miles.  There  is  a  belt  of  barren  land  which 
starts  about  5  miles  south  of  Zinder  and  continues 
northward  until  beyond  Bakimaran — a  belt  alto- 
gether 25  to  30  miles  in  width — and  it  was  across 
this  that  we  travelled  in  setting  out.  It  was 
drearily  bare  country,  undulating  in  places  with 
low  rounded  rises,  sandy  or  covered  with  withered 
grass,  and  often  with  rough  outcrops  of  gravel  and 


BARREN   COUNTRY  NORTH  OF  ZINDER    85 

boulders  and  rock,  while,  in  patches,  there  was 
some  scraggy  bush  and  an  odd  tree.  Few  natives 
were  encountered  until  Bakimaran  was  reached, 
and  cattle  and  goat-herds,  which  are  common  to  in- 
habited territory,  were  remarkably  scarce,  though 
the  latter  circumstance  could,  perhaps,  in  a 
measure  be  explained,  as  there  are  occasions  in 
the  dry  season  when  grazing  or  water  give  out, 
and  it  is  necessary  that  the  main  herds  of  the 
people  be  driven,  often  long  distances,  to  find  new 
pasturage.  Apropos  of  this,  there  sometimes 
arises  an  amusing  incident :  a  thunderstorm  and 
sudden  cloud-burst  of  heavy  rain  occurs  in  a 
limited  locality  and  starts  the  grass  growing 
green  ;  before  long  a  wandering  bushman  chances 
upon  this  fine  pasture,  and  hastens  away  to  fetch 
his  lean  and  hungry  herds  to  it ;  but  on  his  return 
he  finds  to  his  disgust  that  someone,  who  has  also 
made  the  discovery,  has  forestalled  him,  and  there 
ensues  lively  dispute  over  rights  of  possession, 
which  sometimes  ends  in  angry  abuse  and  even 
fighting — like  to  the  madness  of  two  hungry  dogs 
that  pounce  together  upon  a  dish  of  appetising 
food,  antagonistic  and  snarling,  although  the 
vessel,  in  all  probability,  contains  ample  repast 
for  both. 

On  the  following  day  we  departed  from  Baki- 
maran before  dawn,  and  camped  at  Kaleloua  in 
the  afternoon.  On  the  way  we  passed  from  the 
barren  belt  into  fairly  thick  bush  country,  wherein 
no  native  habitations  were  seen  until  we  reached 
our  destination.  The  country  now  contained 
some  big  game.  Red-fronted  Gazelles  were  numer- 
ous, and  were  observed,  usually,  singly  or  in  pairs, 


86  BUSHLAND    AND    DESERT 

and  I  had  no  difficulty  in  shooting  sufficient  meat 
for  my  natives  and  the  headmen  of  Kaleloua. 
Also  one  small  band  of  giraffe  were  observed,  but 
not  disturbed,  much  to  the  disappointment  of  my 
natives,  who  were  most  anxious  that  I  should  kill 
those  Rakuma-n-daji  (Camels  of  the  bush), 
which  is  the  quaint  Hausa  name  for  those  odd- 
shaped  animals. 

On  the  third  day,  which  was  a  Sunday,  we 
travelled  to  Dambiri.  During  the  early  part  of 
the  day  we  continued  to  pass  through  the  bush 
belt  we  had  entered  on  the  previous  day,  but 
midway  on  the  journey,  after  about  20  miles  of 
bush  country  lay  behind,  this  gave  place  again  to 
open  plains  of  sand  and  dry  grass,  which  con- 
tinued to  Dambiri,  and  beyond  as  far  as  eye 
could  see.  In  contour  the  open  landscape  was 
gently  rolling,  without  any  sharp  rise,  and  not 
unlike  the  plain  we  had  passed  in  leaving  Zinder, 
except  in  the  ever-growing  supremacy  of  sand 
and  solitude. 

The  growing  poverty  of  the  land  is  reflected 
in  the  natives  and  their  habitations :  the 
village  of  Dambiri,  like  the  few  others  we  had 
passed  since  leaving  Zinder,  was  small,  and 
the  grass  dwellings  and  yard  fences  built  with 
less  neatness  and  thoroughness  than  further 
south,  and  there  was  much  that  was  unkempt 
and  uncared  for  in  the  general  aspect  of  the 
place,  while  the  natives  themselves  were  poor 
and  raggedly  clad.  It  is  curious  to  note  how 
surely  the  gradual  change  from  fertile  land  to 
desert  land  is  insistent  of  a  corresponding 
falling  off   in   the  quantity   and  quality  of  the 


GROWING   POVERTY  87 

Hausaland  natives,  until  they  reach  the  very 
lowest  ebb  on  the  shores  of  the  desert,  and  cease 
to  venture  farther ;  while  another  and  vastly 
different  race,  the  nomad  Tuaregs,  take  up  the 
duel  of  existence  against  nature  in  the  great 
barren  sea-like  wastes  beyond. 

Dambiri,  the  designation  of  the  village,  is  not 
an  unpleasant  Hausa  name  in  quality  of  sound, 
but  one  gets  rather  a  set-back  if  inquisitive 
enough  to  inquire  into  the  literal  English 
translation,  for  the  meaning  of  the  word  is,  "a 
bush  cat  with  a  bad  smell " — which,  I  take 
it,  rather  pointedly  has  reference  to  the  Civet 
Cat. 

Once  a  week,  on  a  set  day,  it  is  the  custom  of 
each  village  to  hold  market ;  and  market-day 
constitutes  the  most  important  occasion  in  the 
routine  of  native  life,  for  all  are  born  traders, 
even  in  this  impoverished  territory  of  small  pro- 
ductiveness, and  outlying  natives  and  the  in- 
habitants of  other  villages  travel  eagerly,  often 
long  distances,  with  their  quota  of  humble  pro- 
duce, to  swell  the  concourse.  Sunday  was  the 
day  of  market  at  Dambiri,  so  that  there  was 
unwonted  stir  about  the  place  when  we  arrived, 
and  much  sound  of  tom-toms.  I  will  not  go 
into  details  of  market-day  at  Dambiri,  for  the 
wares  and  proceedings  are  similar  to  those  de- 
scribed at  Kano ;  but  I  will  make  mention  of 
the  tom-tom  music. 

Those  drum-beats  which  emanate  so  persist- 
ently from  the  village,  and  which  sound  so 
monotonous  and  aimless  to  the  European  stranger, 
have  in  reality  a  definite  purpose  to  the  initiated. 


88  BUSHLAND    AND    DESERT 

for  they  are  in  fact  declaring  urgent  news  that  is 
intended  to  reach  the  ears  of  all,  something  after 
the  manner  of  the  old-fashioned  town-crier  in 
our  own  country,  who  goes  forth  with  a  hand-bell 
to  make  quaint  public  proclamations.  Here  are 
a  few  examples  selected  out  of  many  :  a  certain 
rattan,  or  scale  of  beats,  means  that  a  beast  (ox, 
sheep,  or  goat)  is  about  to  be  killed,  and  that  those 
who  want  fresh  meat  should  hasten  to  purchase 
it  before  the  excessive  heat  of  the  climate  works 
destruction  upon  it ;  another  sound  denotes  that 
meat  is  being  sold  at  the  market-place — not  at 
the  slaughter-place  ;  others  call  the  population 
to  foregather  before  the  King's  dwelling,  or  to  a 
wedding,  or  to  feast ;  and  yet  another  warns  the 
people  of  the  approach  of  a  Saraki  (local  king)  or  a 
Amiru  (emir  or  prince).  In  the  examples  which 
I  have  given,  it  will  be  seen  that  there  is  some  need 
of  urgency  in  the  proclamation ;  and  that  is 
usually  the  case.  Furthermore,  the  drum-beats 
of  the  tom-tom  travel  much  farther  than  the 
human  voice,  and  as  it  is  often  desired  to  reach 
the  ears  of  the  people  at  toil  in  the  fields  as  well  as 
those  within  the  village,  the  inhabitants  show 
cuteness  in  thus  using  their  favourite  instrument 
of  music  (?)  for  the  duties  of  the  day  as  well  as 
for  pleasure. 

On  the  fourth  day  we  journeyed  throughout 
across  strange  wide  plains  of  grass  and  sand,  where 
no  trees  grow  and  but  few  scattered  dwarf  bushes, 
and  camped  at  Mazia,  which  has  an  altitude  of 
1,700  ft.,  so  that  a  decided  ascent  has  set  in  since 
leaving  Dambiri  (1,500  ft.).  In  fact,  on  reaching 
Tanout  next  day,  the  highest  altitude  thus  far 


STRANGE  PLAINS  OF  GRASS  AND  SAND     89 

encountered  was  recorded,  namely,  1,800  ft., 
while  a  little  further  north,  above  Guinea  Valley, 
the  continuation  of  the  same  height  of  land 
recorded  1,900  ft.,  which  is  the  highest  point 
noted  anywhere  on  my  route  from  Kano  to 
Agades. 

During  the  late  afternoon,  at  Mazia,  I  shot  two 
Dorcas  Gazelles  and  one  great  Arab  Bustard  to 
add  to  our  scant  supply  of  food.  The  dainty 
little  Dorcas  Gazelles  are  creatures  that  frequent 
the  open  plains  and  thin  scrub,  so  that  they  too 
furnished  evidence  that  we  were  now  on  the  shores 
of  the  desert. 

Water  is  not  plentiful  nor  pure  at  Mazia :  in 
fact,  at  this  season  (I  am  writing  at  the  end  of 
February),  after  four  or  five  months  have  passed 
without  rainfall,  many  wells  reach  a  very  low  ebb, 
and  pure  water  was  a  luxury  enjoyed  only  at 
Zinder.  Elsewhere  it  was  always  much  dis- 
coloured with  vegetable  matter,  and  decaying 
timber  props  and  soil ;  but  it  is  precious  enough 
even  so,  for  it  means  no  less  than  life  to  man  and 
beast  in  this  country  of  ravenous  sunlight  and 
terrifying  dryness. 

True  to  schedule,  my  caravan  completed  the 
85-mile  journey  from  Zinder  to  Tanout  in  the 
calculated  time,  and  weary,  dust-covered  men  and 
beasts  camped  at  the  Fort  on  the  fifth  day.  On 
the  way  the  country  continued  open  and  practic- 
ally bushless,  and  little  changed  from  that  of  the 
previous  day,  until  the  caravan  drew  near  to 
Tanout,  when  three  small  hills  became  visible  in 
the  direction  we  were  heading,  while  many  of  the 
low  ridges  among  the  sand-dunes  were  now  strewn 
8 


90  BUSHLAND    AND    DESERT 

with  dark  glazed  and  rounded  stones  and  pebbles, 
which  gave  to  them  a  curious  and  striking  re- 
semblance, when  viewed  from  a  distance,  to  the 
colour  of  heather-hills  at  home  in  winter-time ; 
also,  in  the  low  ground  in  the  widely  sweeping 
hollows  between  the  rounded  rises,  there  were 
often  large  circular  or  oval,  basin-like,  sand- 
coloured  mud-flats,  which,  no  doubt,  hold  lakes 
of  water  in  the  flood-rains  of  a  good  year 
(during  some  years  very  little  rain  falls  in  the 
wet  season,  which,  roughly,  is  July  and  August 
in  this  territory,  while  there  are  occasions  when 
the  country  is  cruelly  handicapped  by  two  or 
three  successive  years  of  very  slight  rainfall), 
but  which  now  appear  to  the  eye  as  dry  and 
smooth  as  a  concrete  area,  and  devoid  of  a 
single  blade  of  grass  or  shrub  or  boulder — a 
cleanliness  quite  remarkable  where  no  human 
hand  has  given  aid. 

At  this  season  of  the  year  Tanout  is  surrounded 
by  dreadfully  bare  country,  and  one  can  scarcely 
conceive  that  the  dead  wastes  of  sand  of  the 
present  time  are,  at  another  season,  cultivated 
and  green  with  the  tall  luxuriant  growth  of 
millet,  guinea-corn,  and  maize ;  nevertheless, 
such  is  the  case.  The  neighbourhood  of  Tanout 
is  a  renowned  granary  in  the  western  Sudan,  and 
it  is  to  this  territory  that  the  Tuaregs  of  Air,  who 
for  lack  of  rain  grow  very  little  in  their  own 
country,  send  their  caravans  to  barter  for  or 
purchase  the  grains  which  I  have  named  above, 
which  are  the  staple  foods  they  live  upon.  This 
in  some  cases  entails  a  journey  of  170  miles 
(from  Agades),  and  in  others  as  much  as  300  miles 


TANOUT  91 

(from  Timia,  the  furthest  north  inhabited  village 
in  Air  to-day),  which  figures  should  be  doubled 
if  one  wishes  to  calculate  the  full  distance, 
outward  and  homeward,  that  caravans  travel 
before  they  can  bring  food  to  the  doors  of  their 
people. 

The  caravan  track  from  the  south  runs  straight 
into  Tanout  fort,  which  therefore  acts  as  a  barrier 
across  the  route,  where  all  who  pass  may  be 
questioned  as  to  their  identity  and  business — 
which  is,  in  fact,  a  duty  performed  at  this  place, 
where  a  check  is  desired  for  military  reasons  on 
all  native  comings  and  goings.  The  fort,  which 
stands  facing  south  on  a  slight  rise,  is  small ;  a 
square  enclosure  within  high  thick  mud  walls, 
containing  a  few  humble  hutments  set  back 
against  the  main  structure  and  facing  into  the 
small  open  barrack  square,  which  serve  as  quar- 
ters for  the  Europeans  and  magazines  for  military 
stores.  The  coloured  troops  are  camped  outside 
in  a  group  of  grass -thatched  huts  just  west  of  the 
fort  walls,  where  a  straight  avenue,  planted  with 
young  trees  that  hesitate  to  take  root  in  the 
ungracious  soil,  leads  down  to  the  native  village, 
which  lies  in  a  dip  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
to  the  west.  The  native  village  is  poorly  con- 
structed and  primitive,  much  like  the  others 
in  the  region,  even  though  this  is  the  capital  of 
Damergou.  At  the  time  of  my  visit  there  was 
one  European  officer  and  three  N.C.O.s  at  the 
fort  in  command  of  the  coloured  troops  ;  and  a 
more  isolated  life  than  theirs  could  not  well  be 
imagined. 

The  native  population  in  1920  within  the  region 


92  BUSHLAND    AND    DESERT 

of  Damergou,  of  which  Tanout  is  the  capital,  is 
detailed  as  follows  : 

Hausa .  22,929 

Beri-Beri 3,500 

Tuareg 2,740 

Fulani 370 

Total  Population 29,539 


I  also  made  some  interesting  notes  with  regard 
to  the  camels  in  this  region  and  the  alarming 
decline  which  has  recently  taken  place — alarming 
because  transport  and  existence  in  the  country 
are  so  much  dependent  on  those  animals.  It  is 
stated  that  there  were  15,000  camels  in  Damergou 
previous  to  the  rising  of  1916  in  Air,  whereas  now 
there  remain  but  2,800 — 2,200  the  property  of 
Tuaregs,  and  600  belonging  to  Beri-Beri.  The 
chief  reason  of  this  great  loss  of  animals  appears 
to  lie  in  the  fact  that  at  the  time  of  the  rising — 
which,  I  am  told,  had  strong  religious  influence 
behind  it,  of  the  Senussi  persuasion,  as  well  as 
cunning  instigation  from  Constantinople,  where 
the  Turks  were  already  the  sworn  enemies  of 
France  in  Europe — ^nearly  all  the  Tuareg  natives 
hastened  north  to  join  the  rebel  leader,  Kaossen, 
taking  with  them  their  camels  ;  and  few  of  those 
camels  ever  returned.  If  one  considers  that  a 
female  camel  has  but  one  young  at  a  birth,  and 
that  many  years  are  required  to  rear  camels  to 
maturity,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  loss  is  very 
serious,  since  it  can  hardly  be  replaced — ^unless 
animals  were  imported  wholesale,  which,  I  fancy, 
is  an  impossibility. 


i;kri-beri  bushjikx,  u.uikugou. 


TANOUT    VILIAQE. 


92] 


NO  VILLAGES   BEYOND  TANOUT  93 

In  the  following  two  days  I  completed  the 
journey  to  my  destination  at  Takoukout,  which 
is  merely  the  native  name  of  a  shallow  valley, 
wherein  a  few  nomad  Tuaregs,  who  live  in  gipsy- 
like families,  herding  their  cattle  and  goats  and 
roaming  from  place  to  place  in  the  virgin  bush, 
have  excavated  numerous  pit-like  wells  to 
obtain  sufficient  water  for  themselves  and  their 
stock. 

There  are  no  native  villages  north  of  Tanout — 
none  until  Agades  is  reached,  169  miles  away,  at 
the  southern  end  of  the  mountains  of  Air. 

There  is  no  water  anywhere  between  Tanout 
and  Takoukout  at  this  season,  so,  before  setting 
out,  one  camel  was  loaded  with  goat-skins  of  water 
sufficient  to  serve  for  the  journey. 

The  country  north  of  Tanout  is  very  irregular, 
with  much  of  the  ground  surface  strewn  with 
pebbles  and  bare  of  vegetation,  while  some 
strange  and  picturesque  escarpments  were  passed 
before  descending  into  Guinea  Valley,  which  is 
about  300  ft.  below  the  level  of  the  high  land  on 
which  Tanout  is  situated.  In  Guinea  Valley,  13 
miles  north  of  Tanout,  the  barren  belt,  which  had 
first  been  entered  beyond  Kaleloua  at  a  point  50 
miles  back,  is  left  behind,  and  in  the  low  ground 
there  is  now  more  bush-growth,  which  continues 
to  Takoukout,  and  beyond  to  the  very  edge  of  the 
desert-sea. 

After  a  pleasant  cool  journey  by  moonlight,  my 
caravan  reached  Takoukout  on  the  second  morn- 
ing after  my  departure  from  Tanout ;  whereupon 
I  prepared  to  make  a  permanent  encampment 
whence  to  do  some  hunting,  for    in  this    last 


94  BUSHLAND    AND    DESERT 

belt  of  bush  before  the  desert  is  entered  there 
is  much  game  reported,  and,  what  concerned 
me  most,  ostriches  I  Lord  Rothschild  was 
particularly  anxious  to  secure  specimens  of 
those  birds  from  this  isolated  region. 


CHAPTER  VII 

OSTRICH   HUNTING 

It  is  remarkable  that  in  the  wide  range  of  territory 
over  which  I  journeyed,  ostriches  were  to  be  found 
only  in  one  particular  part.  I  have  endeavoured 
to  show,  in  the  preceding  chapter,  that  on  the 
shores  of  the  desert  there  are  alternating  strips  of 
barren  desert  and  bushland,  and  it  is  in  the  very 
last  belt  of  bush,  which  reaches  to  the  actual  edge 
of  the  desert,  that  ostriches  are  to  be  found — 
roughly  between  the  small  forts  of  Tanout  and 
Aderbissinat  in  a  scattered  bush  belt  about  80 
miles  in  width.  I  have  seen  one  ostrich  track 
within  30  miles  of  Agades  (near  Tegguidi  cliff) 
and  some  50  miles  north  of  the  usual  range,  while 
I  have  heard  reports  of  ostriches  being  near 
Agades,  but  inactual  experience  I  have  seen  enough 
to  feel  satisfied  that  they  do  not  often  range  far 
beyond  the  bush  belt,  which  dies  out  a  short  dis- 
tance north  of  Aderbissinat,  and  about  80  miles 
south  of  Agades,  which  is  near  to  the  foot  of  the 
Air  mountains. 

In  deciding  to  make  camp  at  Takoukout,  I  had 
selected  the  place  put  forward  by  my  camel-men 
and  by  the  local  natives  as  the  most  favourable 
for  the  pursuit  in  view,  while  at  the  same  time 
they  warned  me  that  ostriches  were  not  numerous 

95 


96  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

anywhere  in  the  country  ;    and  their  judgment 
eventually  proved  to  be  quite  sound. 

It  was  March  4th  when  I  reached  Takoukout 
and  set  about  preparing  a  permanent  camp.  I 
had  had  an  escort  of  Senegalese  soldiers  with  me 
since  leaving  Zinder,  for  it  is  the  military  rule 
that  no  European  shall  proceed  north  of  that 
point  unaccompanied  by  an  armed  escort,  and 
from  Tanout  six  soldiers  were  detailed  to  go  with 
me  to  guard  my  belongings  and  person  at  Takouk- 
out, so  that  on  this  occasion  pitching  camp  was 
rather  an  elaborate  business,  as  it  required  some 
defensive  arrangement.  With  the  purpose  of 
gaining  a  little  shade,  a  clump  of  bush  in  a  slight 
hollow  was  selected,  and  there  camp  was  estab- 
lished within  a  thick  brushwood  barricade  of 
thorn  bushes,  which  was  erected  all  around  the 
encampment  for  protection  and  as  an  enclosing 
wall.  It  was  difficult  to  find  any  local  natives  to 
help  in  cutting  down  trees  for  hut  construction, 
since  the  few  that  existed  within  visiting  distance 
of  the  Takoukout  wells  were  hidden  away  in  soli- 
tary bush-camps,  and  it  was  difficult,  also,  to 
secure  grass  in  the  neighbourhood  sufficiently 
long  for  the  purpose  of  covering  in  the  walls  and 
roof  of  the  huts  ;  but  a  few  Tuaregs  of  the  district 
came  to  our  aid  on  the  second  day,  and  a  comfort- 
able camp  was  knocked  into  shape  in  due  course. 
There  were  then  within  the  zareba :  my  tent 
erected  for  my  own  use  ;  a  grass-hut  workshop  ; 
a  small  cooking  shelter  for  John ;  and,  set  some 
distance  apart,  four  rough  hut  sun-shelters  for  the 
soldiers,  as  well  as  for  Sakari,  a  local  hunter,  and 
a  camel-man ;    while  my  horse,  and  those  be- 


PITCHING   A  HUNTING  CAMP  97 

longing  to  escort,  and  two  camels  for  carrying 
water-skins  or  game  on  long  journeys  in  the 
bush,  were  also  within  the  enclosure  on  nights 
that  I  happened  to  be  there. 

A  notable  addition  to  my  personnel  at  this  time 
was  a  native  hunter,  of  whom  I  shall  make  brief 
reference.  This  local  warrior,  whose  proper  name 
was  Dirto,  but  whom  my  followers  invariably 
called  Tsofo  (old  man),  was  secured  for  me  by  the 
French  officer  at  Tanout,  so  that  I  would  have  a 
man  familiar  with  hunting,  and,  above  all, 
familiar  with  the  puzzling  sameness  of  the  level 
seas  of  low  bush-forest  which  prevailed  in  the  Tak- 
oukout  region.  Tsofo,  as  I  too  called  him,  since  the 
name  fitted  so  well,  had  the  reputation  of  being  a 
great  chasseur  who  had  lived  his  life  hunting  the 
wild  animals  of  the  bush  with  snare  and  bow  and 
arrows,  which  primitive  devices  are  the  only  ones 
available  to  the  natives  for  pursuit  of  the  chase  in 
the  country. 

For  the  purpose  of  hunting,  and,  particularly 
as  a  means  of  defence,  bows  and  arrows  are  uni- 
versally in  use  in  Damergou,  and  an  adult  male 
native  is  seldom  seen  abroad,  no  matter  on  what 
business  he  is  intent,  without  bow  in  hand  and  a 
leather  sheath,  containing  usually  about  fifteen 
arrows,  slung  from  a  cord  over  the  left  shoulder. 
The  same  weapon  is  much  used  in  Damagarim 
and  Kano  provinces,  but  not  to  the  same  extent  as 
in  this  still  more  remote  and  exposed  zone,  where 
the  need  for  an  arm  for  protection  is  imperative, 
since  among  the  natives  there  is  not  only  lingering 
dread  of  robbers  descending  across  the  desert 
from  the  north,  but  also  the  wild  instinct  of  very 


98  OSTRICH    HUNTING 

primitive  people,  in  dreadfully  primitive  sur- 
roundings, to  wage  war,  one  against  the  other, 
under  the  grim  impulse  of  an  existence  that  de- 
mands self-protection  before  all  else,  and  upholds 
the  faith  that  life  is  a  struggle  for  "  the  survival  of 
the  fittest."  The  European  law  of  the  country 
forbids  any  natives  to  possess  fire-arms. 

But,  to  return  to  Tsofo,  I  will  endeavour  to 
describe  him,  for  he  was  an  odd  character  in 
appearance  and  constitution,  and  at  the  same  time 
somewhat  typical  of  many  of  his  kind.  When  I 
first  laid  eyes  on  him,  I  could  not  believe  that  the 
ill-clad,  unkempt  creature  that  stood  before  me 
was  the  chosen  hunter  that  was  to  accompany  me. 
Upon  my  word,  I  never  saw  a  dirtier  native  ;  his 
bit  of  a  gown,  once  white,  now  a  smoked  blackish 
colour,  was  cast  carelessly  over  his  shoulder  and 
hung  in  rags  about  him,  full  of  rents  and  badly 
frayed  round  the  bottom  edge ;  beneath  this  he 
wore  an  equally  discoloured  buckskin  loin-cloth 
and  apron.  He  carried  not  a  scrap  of  food  when 
he  joined  me,  and  had  nothing  about  his  person 
except  bow  and  arrows,  and  a  hatchet  and  hunting- 
knife  of  his  own  crude  making.  Undoubtedly  he 
was  past  his  prime,  in  fact  he  was  an  old  man,  de- 
spite the  stalwart  framework  that  remained  of  deep 
chest,  and  mighty  thighs  and  lower  limbs  which 
bespoke  an  athlete.  His  face  was  so  wrinkled 
with  exposure,  and  with  frowning  beneath  the 
fierce  rays  of  the  sunlight,  and  so  unkempt  that  it 
would  be  unkind  to  estimate  his  character  by  it. 
The  coarse  hair  on  his  head  and  the  scrub-beard 
on  his  chin  were  almost  entirely  grey,  and  his 
watery  red-rimmed  eyes  betrayed  declining  years. 


AN  ODD   CHARACTER  99 

He  wore  a  broad-brimmed,  high-crowned  hat, 
locally  woven  with  dyed  grasses,  which  was  not 
unlike  the  garish  headgear  of  a  Spanish  muleteer. 
On  his  feet  he  wore  rough  sandals  cut  to  shape 
from  a  single  piece  of  thick  antelope-hide.  He 
was  a  Beri-Beri  native  of  a  very  primitive  class, 
and  most  of  his  kind  that  I  have  seen  have  fine 
physique,  but  coarse  features  of  heavy  unattrac- 
tive type,  and  I  have  often  doubted  the  purity  of 
their  breeding. 

As  I  have  said,  it  would  be  unkind  to  judge 
Tsofo's  character  by  his  unprepossessing  appear- 
ance, so  I  will  tell  you  how  I  found  him  in  daily 
life.     In  his  favour  be  it  said  :   he  knew  perfectly 
the  bush  country  where  we  hunted,  and,  during 
many  long  journeys  in  the  most  difficult  bush  I 
have  ever  encountered,  he  never  failed  to  find  his 
way  back  to  the  base  camp,  though  he  had  one  or 
two  occasions  for  anxiety.     On  the  other  hand, 
Sakari,   the   Hausa   boy,   was  quite   bewildered 
in  this  country,  and  got  separated  from  us  and 
lost  on  three  occasions,  which  goes  to  show  that 
all  natives  have  not  that  marvellous  faculty  of 
travelling  in  a  given  direction  with  animal-like 
instinct  and  memory,  which  is  usually  their  most 
striking  gift.    On  accoiuit  of  this  shortcoming,  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  Sakari  had  lived  most  of  his 
life  in  Lagos  and  Kano,  and  belonged  to  a  family 
of  shop-keepers,  so  that  no  doubt  environment, 
which   has    such   a   powerful   influence   on   the 
character  of  mankind  as  well  as  on  the  lesser 
creatures  of  the  earth,  had  much  to  do  with  his 
loss  of  natural  instinct. 

Tsofo's  knowledge  of  the  bush  was  his  greatest 


100  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

asset ;  as  a  hunter  he  was  not  a  success,  for 
undoubtedly  he  was  too  old,  as  I  will  explain 
below.  But  he  was  most  eager  to  serve  me  and 
to  bag  game,  and  spared  no  pains  to  that  end. 
Also  he  was  on  friendly  terms  with  the  few  nomad 
Tuaregs  who  came  about  the  shallow  wells  at 
Takoukout  to  water  their  herds  and  fill  their 
water-skins.  (With  them  this  old  hand  at  travel- 
ling light  and  camping  anywhere  bartered  part 
of  his  share  of  the  buck-meat  killed,  so  that  he 
could  have  millet-meal  (Dawa)  and  goat  cheese 
(Chuku)  to  vary  his  diet.)  He  was  kindly  dis- 
posed to  all  he  met,  and  had  always  a  word  and  a 
hand-pat  for  children,  while  he  never  attempted 
that  domineering  attitude  which  natives  are  so 
prone  to  assume,  when  backed  by  a  white  man's 
presence,  to  bully  some  gift  from  the  frightened 
bush-people. 

Being  an  old  man,  long  days  were  too  much 
for  Tsofo,  but,  even  so,  he  never  dropped  behind 
while  he  hunted,  though  the  efforts  of  the  day 
often  caused  him  to  groan  with  pain  and  complain 
of  sickness  when  we  got  into  camp  at  night.  He 
had  wonderful  strength  and  endurance  for  his  age, 
and  I  often  found  myself  admiring  his  dogged 
gait,  though  it  was  nothing  less  than  pure  animal 
toughness  of  the  kind  which  one  associates  with 
tramps,  or  tinkers  in  the  old  country,  who  live 
outdoors  the  year  round,  and  care  little  for  bodily 
comfort  and  cleanliness  so  long  as  they  can  secure 
enough  to  eat. 

Tsofo  had  his  limitations  :  he  would  eat  food 
in  almost  any  condition  and  in  large  improvident 
quantities.     When  he  joined  my  caravan  he  was 


AN  ODD  CHARACTER  101 

well-nigh  in  a  starving  condition,  and  when  a 
gazelle  was  killed  for  food,  the  old  man  fell  upon  it 
like  a  jackal,  starting  on  the  raw  entrails,  when 
disembowelling  the  animal,  and  thereafter  cooking 
and  eating  meat  until  he  was  completely  gorged. 
Next  day  he  was  sick  and  not  so  greedy,  but  he 
soon  recovered,  and  before  long  I  knew  him  to  be 
a  savage,  untamed  glutton  when  he  had  food  in  his 
possession.  The  old  rascal,  I'm  sure,  had  been  a 
very  fine  hunter  and  tracker,  for  he  knew  all  the 
"  tricks  of  the  trade,"  as  it  were,  and  the  habits 
of  the  animals  ;  but  both  eyesight  and  hearing 
were  impaired  to  such  an  extent  that  he  altogether 
lacked  the  acutely  keyed  keenness  of  those  senses, 
which  are  essential  to  good  hunting.  I  soon 
found  that  he  was  a  blunderer  after  he  had  spoilt 
a  chance  or  two  to  shoot  in  failing  to  detect  the 
first  slight  movement  of  wary  game,  while  he 
proved  a  dreadfully  slow  tracker,  because,  by 
reason  of  his  bad  eyesight,  he  often  overshot  the 
footprints  he  was  following  in  the  sand,  and  had 
to  search  about  to  pick  up  the  right  track  again. 
His  knowledge  of  the  bush  was  invaluable,  and, 
besides,  he  had  an  unassuming  character  that 
pleased  me,  so  I  always  took  him  out,  but  when  I 
understood  his  weakness,  I  did  not  allow  him  to 
join  me  up  in  front,  but  bade  him  follow  some 
hundred  yards  behind. 

Before  I  proceed  to  deal  with  the  actual  search 
for  ostriches,  I  feel  I  should  make  reference  to  the 
climate,  and  its  fierce  antagonism  to  comfortable 
hunting  in  this  part  of  the  world. 

I  would  not  like  to  boldly  assert  that  the  climate 
in  the  Western  Sudan  is  unhealthy  for  Europeans, 


102  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

for  such  an  assertion  might  appear  unjust  in  the 
estimation  of  some  men  of  very  adaptable  and 
robust  constitution,  but  on  the  whole  I  think  it 
can  justly  be  said  that  the  climate  is  such  as  be- 
longs to  Central  Africa  in  general,  and  that  there- 
fore it  already  has  an  accepted  reputation  for 
being  very  hot  and  trying.  North  of  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Kano  there  is  no  open  water  or  marsh 
in  the  dry  season  (approximately  from  October  to 
July),  so  that  for  the  greater  part  of  the  year  no 
hanging  dampness,  no  mosquitoes,  and  no  malaria 
are  experienced  in  the  country  with  which  I  am 
dealing — ^which  is  so  much  to  the  good.  On  the 
other  hand  you  have  a  mighty  opponent  to  com- 
fort and  health  in  the  form  of  the  merciless  sun, 
which  glares  down  upon  the  white  glittering  sand- 
surface  of  the  earth  with  unmitigated  fierceness, 
laying  an  awesome  withering  breathlessness  upon 
the  land  which  saps  the  energy  of  man  and  beast, 
so  that  they  perforce  forsake  their  occupations  for 
the  greater  part  of  the  day  and  seek  rest  in  the 
shade ;  while  even  the  plant  life  cannot  survive  the 
remorseless  moisture-consuming  oppressor  in 
the  sky,  and  leaves  and  grass  that  were  green  in 
the  short  rainy  season,  lie  wilted  and  bleached 
on  the  sand.  We  Europeans  of  temperate  zones 
love  the  sun,  but  I'm  afraid  Old  Sol  is  a  graceless 
and  greedy  robber  of  the  earth's  vitality  in  some 
climes,  and  here,  where  Nature  has  raised  no  com- 
pact leafy  screen  upon  the  land,  nor  sends  not 
clouds  across  the  sky,  he  well-nigh  reigns  supreme 
over  smitten  wastes  that  lie  wretchedly  subdued 
because  of  his  unopposed  power.  On  account  of 
the  intense  heat,    and  the  exhaustion  resultant 


EXCESSIVE  HEAT  108 

therefrom,  I  found  the  climate  very  trying  at 
times,  for  there  are  many  occasions  when  the 
hunter  must  be  afoot  all  day  in  the  open,  while, 
even  if  he  chances  to  be  in  camp,  the  collector 
seldom  enjoys  relaxation  from  his  busy  labours 
by  the  specimen  bench  during  the  valuable  hours 
of  daylight.  Records  of  temperature  on  27th 
March  read :  7  a.m.,  58  %  Fahr. ;  noon,  105  % 
Fahr. ;  8  p.m.,  71  %  Fahr.  I  have  brought  up 
the  subject  of  climate  at  this  juncture,  because 
it  was  at  Takoukout  that  I  felt  the  heat  more 
trying  than  at  any  other  period — ^in  fact,  it 
temporarily  sapped  my  strength  to  such  an  extent 
that  I  came  near  collapsing  under  the  strain  of  day 
after  day  searching  the  stifling  hot  waterless 
country  for  restless,  ever-travelling  ostriches. 

I  will  not  enter  into  every  incident  of  the 
unlucky  hunting  that  I  experienced  at  Takoukout, 
but  will  quote  from  my  diary  a  few  records  of 
typical  days.  In  all  I  hunted  twenty  days  for 
ostriches  and  saw  sixteen  birds,  but  never  fired  a 
shot  at  any  of  them.  Nevertheless,  the  general 
details  of  hunting  them  are,  I  feel  sure,  not  with- 
out peculiar  interest,  and  on  that  account  I  am 
induced  to  give  some  personal  experiences. 

Ith  March. — Away  hunting  all  day.  Left  camp 
6.30  a.m. ;  returned  5.30  p.m.  Set  out  north- 
west till  noon,  then  north  till  3  p.m.,  then  south- 
east to  camp.  Searched  again  for  ostriches 
without  seeing  any  ;  a  few  tracks  encountered, 
all  leading  westward.  In  late  afternoon,  having 
seen  no  ostriches,  I  decided  to  break  the  silence, 
which  I  was  particular  to  preserve  so  long  as  there 
was  hope  of  coming  on  any  of  the  great  wary 


104,  OSTRICH    HUNTING 

birds,  and  to  shoot  gazelle,  if  the  opportunity 
offered  when  nearing  camp.  Now,  the  country 
within  the  last  bush-belt  is  rich  in  game,  and  a  day 
never  passed  without  seeing  some  beautiful  gazelle 
— creatures  which  surely  must  rank  among  the 
most  noble  on  earth,  so  delicate  in  form  are  they, 
so  superbly  graceful,  so  joyously  alive  in  activity 
and  in  the  sheen  of  health  that  casts  a  glamour 
over  their  soft  rich  coats,  so  proud  with  their 
finely  poised  heads  and  large  inquiring  eyes  and 
nostrils.  There  were  three  species  of  them : 
sometimes  dainty  little  Dorcas  Gazelles,  pale 
fawn  in  colour,  like  the  dry  grass  and  sand,  would 
be  encountered  in  small  lots  of  two,  four,  and 
five,  and  occasionally  in  herds  of  about  ten  to 
fifteen  in  the  open  sandy  glades,  which  they  seem 
to  prefer  to  frequent ;  sometimes,  again,  the 
rich  rufous  Red-fronted  Gazelles  would  be  seen 
among  the  acacias,  usually  single,  in  pairs,  or  in 
threes  and  fours — ^never  in  herds ;  while  yet 
again  the  big  and  striking  Dama  Gazelles  would 
be  encountered — striking  because  of  the  large 
amount  of  conspicuous  white  which  they  possess. 
They  are  the  largest  species  of  the  genus.  They 
were  occasionally  seen  single,  but  are  much  given 
to  associate  in  herds  of  ten,  twenty,  thirty,  or 
more.  (Later  on,  in  August,  after  the  advent  of 
the  Rains,  which  had  caused  a  tall  rank  grass  to 
spring  up  in  the  bush  and  gave  leaf  to  the  acacias, 
so  that  the  country  appeared  much  more  enclosed 
and  vastly  changed  from  the  open  barrenness 
which  it  possessed  in  the  dry  season,  those 
animals  appeared  to  be  migrating  northward  out 
into  the  desert  margin ;    no  doubt  so  that  they 


YOU>"G    OSTRICHES. 


DORCAS    GAZELLE. 


104] 


REGARDING  BIG  GAME  105 

might  breathe  the  wind  of  the  open  places,  and 
be  to  some  extent  free  from  flies,  and  feed  on  the 
fresh  delicate  grasses  that  were  then  sprouting 
forth.  On  one  notable  day,  when  between 
Tegguidi  and  Abellama — ^before  the  bush  belt 
is  entered  when  journeying  from  the  north — ^I 
passed  herd  after  herd  of  Dama  Gazelles,  and  was 
able  to  get  close  enough  on  three  occasions  to 
count  the  numbers.  The  totals  were  37,  44,  and 
84,  and  in  each  case  I  probably  overlooked  a  few. 

The  local  Hausa  names  of  those  three  species 
are :  Dorcas  Gazelle,  Matakundi ;  Red-fronted 
Gazelle,  Barewa ;  Dama  Gazelle,  Mena,  some- 
times Myna,     The  Hausa  for  ostrich  is  Jimmina. 

From  the  above  may  be  gathered  some  idea  of 
buck  we  expected  to  see  on  this  evening  of  which 
I  am  writing  ;  true,  there  were  other  kinds,  but  so 
rarely  seen  that,  as  a  general  rule,  they  could  be 
discounted,  though  their  clean-cut  tracks  in  the 
sand  were  occasionally  crossed.  As  far  as  my 
observations  go,  those  others  were  White  Oryx, 
Korrigum,  and  Giraffe. 

We  were  still  a  fair  distance  from  camp  when  a 
nice  herd  of  a  dozen  Dama  Gazelles  were  sighted, 
and,  after  a  certain  amount  of  running  and  dodg- 
ing to  keep  a  screen  of  bush  cover  between  the 
herd  and  myself,  I  got  a  good  view  of  them,  and 
managed  to  drop  the  animal  that  appeared  to 
have  the  best  head.  I  got  another  as  they  jumped 
and  paused  to  ascertain  from  which  direction  the 
danger  threatened,  and  yet  another  in  following 
them  up  a  little  way  ;  for,  besides  wanting  speci- 
mens, meat  was  needed  in  camp  for  all  the  natives 
— afresh  meat  and  sun-dried.  One  of  the  animals 
9 


106  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

was  a  splendid  male,  but,  as  so  often  happens,  the 
fine  head  was  spoilt  through  one  horn  being 
slightly  deformed  and  broken  at  the  tip.  How- 
ever, one  female  was  a  good  specimen,  and,  as 
both  sexes  were  desirable,  I  reserved  it  for  a 
museum  specimen,  and  told  the  natives  not  to 
cut  it  in  any  way.  The  other  two  were  disem- 
bowelled, and  all  were  then  loaded  on  to  the  two 
camels  that  had  come  up  from  the  rear,  where  they 
had  been  following  unseen.  The  day  was  then 
drawing  to  a  close,  but  incident  was  not  yet 
finished  with,  for,  before  reaching  camp,  I  stalked 
and  shot  a  Red-fronted  Gazelle — also  a  nice 
museum  specimen — and  missed  its  companion. 

8th  March.— In  camp  all  day  skinning  and 
preserving  two  gazelles,  one  jackal,  and  a  few 
small  birds. 

9th  March. — ^Left  camp  at  daybreak  to  continue 
search  for  ostrich.  Travelled  eastward.  Made 
short  halt  at  10  a.m.  Nothing,  so  far,  has  been 
seen  of  our  quarry,  though  four  tracks  of  yester- 
day's making  were  crossed — ^three  of  them  leading 
in  a  southerly  direction  and  one  in  northerly 
direction.  Five  Dorcas  Gazelles  seen  about  time 
of  halting.  Continued  on  the  move  after  a  brief 
consultation  with  Tsofo,  at  the  same  time  chang- 
ing direction  more  into  the  north,  and  soon  entered 
country  where  bush  was  more  plentiful,  for 
previously  it  had  been  very  open  and  the  scrub 
thin.  But  up  to  noon-time  nothing  seen  moving  ; 
sun  blazing  hot.  Lunched  and  lay  watchful  for 
a  time  in  the  doubtful  shade  of  a  poor-leaved  tree, 
while  the  natives  slept. 

Resumed  search  through  bush  about  2  p.m., 


SEARCHING  FOR  OSTRICH  107 

about  which  time  some  Dama  Gazelles  were  seen 
resting  in  the  heat  of  day.  Those  animals  were 
given  a  wide  berth  and  left  undisturbed,  as  is  my 
unvarying  custom  when  the  search  for  ostrich  is 
afoot.  In  my  opinion,  to  disturb  any  such  game 
which,  for  the  time  being,  happen  to  be  of  second- 
ary interest,  and  set  them  hurrying  away  before 
you  in  alarm,  is  almost  as  bad  as  to  lose  patience 
and  fire  an  unimportant  shot,  for  in  both  cases 
you  stand  to  spoil  the  great  chance  you  hope  for, 
since  there  is  always  the  possibility  of  giving 
warning  to  the  creatures  you  seek,  and  which  may 
at  any  moment  be  at  hand  all  unknown  to  the 
hunter. 

Close  on  4  p.m.  we  came  upon  a  very  fresh 
ostrich  track  where  a  bird  had  passed  about  two 
hours  earlier  in  the  afternoon.  Followed  track 
some  distance,  but  bird  not  seen,  and  gave  up,  as 
there  appeared  no  prospect  of  overtaking  it  before 
darkness  set  in ;  indeed,  so  far  as  that  was  con- 
cerned, there  was  no  certainty  that  it  would  be 
overtaken  even  in  a  whole  day's  travelling,  for 
they  are  birds  that  are  incessantly  moving  on 
from  place  to  place,  while,  if  alarmed,  they  run 
long  distances  before  assured  that  they  are  safe 
from  their  enemies. 

Leaving  the  ostrich  tracks,  we  started  on  a 
long  wearisome  journey  in  a  westerly  direction  to 
camp,  while  the  sun  set  and  the  day  finished.  I 
and  the  natives — Sakari,  Tsofo,  and  the  man  with 
the  camels — showed  much  relief  and  gladness 
when  at  last,  after  the  trying  labour  of  picking  our 
way  over  rough  unfamiliar  country  in  the  dark, 
we  caught  the  welcome  light  of  our  camp-fires, 


108  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

beckoning  from  afar  ;  and  we  were  safely  back  in 
camp  an  hour  and  a  half  after  dark. 

From  what  I  have  thus  far  seen,  added  to  local 
information  gleaned  from  more  than  one  quarter, 
I  am  satisfied  that  ostriches  are  far  from  plenti- 
ful in  this  isolated  strip  of  country  that  they 
inhabit,  and  it  has  been,  and  will  continue  to  be, 
hard  hunting  to  secure  the  desired  specimens— 
long  arduous  days  of  tracking  through  the  sand- 
swept  bush,  beneath  the  inextinguishable  sun, 
until  one  day,  perchance,  we  meet  across  each 
other's  tracks.  Tsofo,  the  old  native  hunter, 
claims  that  for  a  number  of  years  hunting  condi- 
tions within  the  territory  have  been  undergoing 
change  owing  to  the  influx  of  nomad  Tuaregs, 
with  their  herds  of  goats  and  cattle,  from  the 
neighbourhood  of  Air.  Those  natives  in  small 
numbers  are  now  scattered  about  in  the  bush  at 
distant  intervals,  and,  possibly,  if  they  were 
sedentary,  no  harm  would  be  done,  but  the  neces- 
sity of  constantly  changing  to  fresh  ground,  so  that 
enough  food  may  be  found  for  their  herds,  and 
their  own  strong  nomadic  instincts,  lead  those 
Tuaregs  to  range  from  place  to  place  continually 
and  disturb  considerable  areas,  and  Tsofo  rightly 
claims  that  this  circumstance  greatly  tends  to 
frighten  any  timid  game  such  as  the  ostrich,  for 
nothing  is  more  disturbing  to  their  keen  senses 
than  to  come  across  the  tainted  trail  which  clumsy 
herds  of  domestic  animals  invariably  leave  behind 
wherever  they  happen  to  pass,  or  pause  in  feeding. 
Tsofo  declares,  and  no  doubt  there  is  a  lot  of  truth 
in  his  statement,  that  when  the  French  occupied 
Agades  (the  first  French  military  mission  visited 


i 


A  GREAT  CHANCE  LOST  109 

Agades  in  1904),  some  of  the  wild  unenthralled 
Tuaregs  of  Air  fled  from  the  country  in  fear  of  the 
invaders  and  scattered  broadcast  on  the  edge  of 
the  desert  as  far  south  as  the  neighbourhood 
of  Tanout  in  their  secretive,  gipsy-hke  wanderings. 

10th  March. — Hunting  as  unfruitful  as  yester- 
day. 

11th  March, — Almost  at  dark,  after  a  long 
uneventful  tramp  through  the  bush,  I  at  last 
sighted  ostrich.  Crossing  from  a  bare  open  glade, 
and  approaching  quite  close  to  an  edge  of  fairly 
thick  bush,  I  suddenly  stood  motionless  in  my 
stride,  for  I  had  seen  the  head  and  neck  of  an 
ostrich  just  within  the  cover.  The  acacias  awk- 
wardly blocked  further  view,  and  breathlessly  I 
made  a  short  careful  creep  forward.  When  I  rose, 
inch  by  inch,  to  peer  forward,  I  found  I  was  quite 
close  to  a  great  black  male  ostrich,  but,  unfortu- 
nately, it  stood  on  the  far  side  of  a  tree,  and  the 
trunk  and  all  intervening  branches  and  foliage  hid 
it  to  such  an  extent  that  I  could  not  discern  head 
from  tail,  nor  where  to  place  a  fatal  shot.  There- 
fore I  tried  to  change  my  position  very  slightly,  and 
was  in  the  act  of  doing  so,  when,  of  a  sudden,  an- 
other bird  on  my  right,  a  grey  hen  which  I  had  not 
seen  amongst  the  bushes  nor  thought  of  guarding 
against,  rushed  off  in  alarm,  startling  the  bird  I 
was  stalking  and  two  others.  In  [an  instant,  al- 
most, they  were  out  of  sight  among  the  bushes,  and 
although  I  rushed  forward  hoping  that  an  open 
space  was  not  far  ahead  and  that  I  would  get  a 
shot  at  them  making  off,  I  had  no  such  luck,  and 
never  saw  them  again.  My  disappointment  was 
acute,  the  more  so  because  I  had  plenty  of  time  to 


110  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

fire  from  the  first  position,  after  crawling  forward, 
if  I  had  foreseen  what  was  to  follow,  and  taken 
the  risk  of  getting  a  lucky  shot  home. 

Who  that  is  a  sportsman  does  not  know  dis- 
appointment of  the  kind  ?  I  fancy  we  all  do,  and, 
moreover,  have  been  lured  on  to  stick  to  many  a 
difficult  quest  in  once  having  seen  and  let  escape 
some  much-prized  quarry.  Does  not  the  fisherman 
who  has  risen  a  nice  fish  and  missed  it,  after  many 
patient  hours  on  the  water,  go  on  thereafter  with 
a  new  zest  and  a  brighter  outlook  ?  It  was  so  in 
my  case  ;  and,  instead  of  returning  to  Takoukout, 
and  having  sufficient  water  on  the  camels,  we 
camped  out  in  the  bush  this  night  with  a  new 
excitement,  and  hoping  to  make  amends  on  the 
morrow. 

12th  March. — Camped  comfortably  overnight. 

Hopes  awakened  by  yesterday's  experience 
doomed  to  disappointment,  for  the  day's  hunting 
brought  no  reward.  Returned  to  camp  in  the 
afternoon  ;  very  tired,  for  the  sun  and  the  glitter- 
ing sand  take  it  out  of  one.  The  sun  seems  to  hold 
its  fatiguing  intensity  from  9  a.m.  till  4  p.m.  at 
this  time  of  year. 

A  number  of  gazelles  seen,  and  tracks  in  the 
sand  are  constantly  crossed.  It  is  splendid 
country  for  tracking,  and  most  interesting  to  read 
and  study  the  signs  upon  the  smooth  sand. 

Sand  covers  the  whole  earth  in  this  country, 
and  reminds  me  much  of  a  land  of  snow.  The 
level  wastes,  that  are  random  planted  with  wiry, 
hard-living  thorn  trees  (acacias),  have  patches 
that  are  wind-swept  and  crusted  to  hardness 
underfoot,  and  there  are  soft  driftings  in  the  slight 


FRUITLESS   HUNTING  111 

declivities  and  about  the  plant  roots,  while  the 
grass  is  so  scant  in  most  places,  that  the  few  blades 
that  stand  have  the  aspect  of  such  as  peep  above 
the  surface  of  a  country  that  has  been  the  victim  of 
a  deep  fall  of  snow. 

13th  March. — ^A  day  in  camp.  Feeling  some- 
what overstrained.  Skinned  birds  all  forenoon  ; 
collected  ten  more  in  afternoon.  Giving  bush  a 
rest  in  hope  that  I'll  have  more  luck  next  outing. 

IMh  March. — Greater  part  of  day  skinning 
eleven  birds.  Toward  evening  made  short  hunt 
to  secure  meat  for  camp,  and  had  a  few  shots  at 
gazelle,  wounding  two,  but  failed  to  get  either 
of  them.  I  shot  badly  :  possibly  through  being 
overtired. 

When  about  to  turn  home,  I  stood  on  a  slight 
elevation  and  looked  out  across  a  wide  shallow 
hollow  on  to  an  open  grass  slope  similar  to  the  one 
I  occupied,  and  carefully  scanned  the  distant  view, 
more  from  habit  than  in  hope  of  seeing  anything 
of  particular  interest.  My  surprise  was  therefore 
manifest  to  the  natives  with  me  when  I  discovered 
four  black-looking  objects,  like  boulders  or  small 
dark  shrubs,  in  the  far  distance,  that  moved  and 
were  undoubtedly  ostriches.  In  an  instant  the 
blacks  were  beside  me  imbued  with  excitement 
equal  to  my  own  as  I  pointed  out  the  birds. 
Immediately,  for  receding  day  threatened  to 
frustrate  this  lucky  chance,  I  started  on  a  long 
encircling  stalk,  since  the  birds  were  in  an  open 
position  that  was  difficult  to  approach  unseen,  and 
great  care  had  to  be  exercised,  for  ostriches  are 
endowed  with  wonderfully  keen  eyesight.  Un- 
fortunately, when  I  cast  in  toward  the  position  of 


112  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

the  quarry,  I  saw  nothing,  and  thought  I  had  mis- 
judged the  place  and  was  a  little  too  high  on  the 
slope.  I  then  cast  lower  down,  but  with  no  better 
result,  and  soon  picked  up  their  tracks  leading 
westward  on  to  the  summit  of  the  rise.  Perhaps  I 
had  been  heard  by  the  birds,  for  pebbles  crunched 
annoyingly  underfoot  in  places,  or  perhaps  they 
had  merely  shifted  onward  in  feeding  ;  I  could 
not  tell,  for  I  had  been  out  of  sight  of  them  almost 
since  the  stalk  began.  They  might  still  be  quite 
close ;  but  that  availed  me  nothing,  for  the 
moments  of  daylight,  that  had  been  precious, 
were  finished.  So  there  was  nothing  for  it  but 
to  give  up  and  return  to  camp  empty-handed. 

15th  March. — Left  camp  at  daybreak,  taking 
with  me  two  mounted  native  escort,  two  camels 
and  camel-men,  Tsofo,  and  Sakari  in  charge 
of  my  horse.  I  usually  have  a  horse  following 
behind  in  case  it  should  be  required  in  an  emerg- 
ency, but  never  use  it  in  actual  hunting,  for  the 
hoofs  resound  over  loudly  for  my  liking,  and  I 
prefer  to  be  far  out  ahead  of  all  following,  except- 
ing one  native  gun-bearer,  and,  on  foot,  moving 
along  as  quietly  as  possible.  I  took  a  larger 
following  than  usual  on  this  occasion,  and  camels 
to  carry  skins  of  water,  as  I  intended  to  be  away 
some  days. 

Travelled  all  day  in  north-westerly  direction, 
but  no  ostriches  seen,  and  only  two  single  tracks  of 
them  were  crossed. 

At  dusk  shot  one  gazelle  for  food,  and  camped 
at  the  kill  for  the  night. 

Gazelle  continue  to  be  constantly  seen.  I  have 
noted  th9,t  jD^ma  G^^zelles  hg,ve  ^  remarkable 


DAYS  IN  THE   BUSH  118 

tendency  to  run  up-wind  when  alarmed,  an  im- 
pulse so  strong  that  if  you  know  this  habit,  and 
make  to  get  nearly  between  them  and  the  wind, 
instead  of  making  directly  for  them,  they  will 
almost  certainly  pass  you  as  they  run  away.  As 
a  general  rule  they  are  very  alert  animals,  and 
more  difficult  to  stalk  than  either  the  Red-fronted 
or  Dorcas  Gazelles. 

16th  March. — ^INIoved  on  again  at  daylight,  first 
heading  westward,  then  swinging  more  into  the 
north  under  the  direction  of  Tsofo,  making  for  a 
well  on  the  Agades  trail  named  Tchingaraguen, 
so  that  the  horses  could  be  watered  and  the  water- 
skins  refilled.  During  the  morning  oryx  and 
giraffe  tracks  were  seen  on  the  sand,  which  were 
the  only  incidents  of  note.  Oryx  tracks  were  not 
uncommon,  but  giraffe  tracks  were  seldom  seen 
during  my  wanderings  through  this  bush.  Neither 
animal  was  important  to  my  collections,  so  that  I 
did  not  attempt  to  follow  their  tracks. 

We  reached  Tchingaraguen  about  11  a.m.,  and 
made  short  halt  while  I  breakfasted  and  the  horses 
were  watered — the  poor  brutes  were  desperately 
thirsty.  This  half-barren,  shadeless  sand  country 
is  not  a  land  for  horses,  and  they  suffer  a  lot  from 
the  heat,  while  fodder  is  miserably  poor.  I  have 
resolved  that  when  I  move  on  to  Agades  I  will 
leave  my  horse  "behind  at  Tanout  and  henceforth 
ride  a  camel. 

Leaving  Tchingaraguen,  we  crossed  the  Agades 
track  and  held  south-east.  In  other  words,  we  had 
reached  the  crown  of  the  huge  circular  trail  we 
were  making  through  the  country,  with  the 
starting-point   at   Takoukout ;  we   had   covered 


114  OSTRICH    HUNTING 

the  western  side  of  that  circle,  and  had  now  the 
eastern  side  to  trace  in  on  the  way  homeward.  The 
country  we  entered,  once  well  clear  of  the  watering- 
place,  held  more  encouraging  signs  than  hitherto, 
for  a  fair  number  of  footprints  were  seen  upon  the 
sand,  sometimes  where  an  ostrich  had  passed, 
sometimes  where  birds  had  been  feeding  on  the 
bleak  acacias  or  on  a  little  patch  of  living  ground 
weed  ;  once,  too,  I  came  upon  the  "  form  "  where 
a  bird  had  recently  had  a  sand-bath,  and  picked  up 
a  few  feathers  which  had  dropped  out  while  the 
bird  rolled  in  the  dust.  But  they  are  birds  that 
are  ever  on  the  move,  here  one  hour  and  gone  the 
next ;   and  this  day  I  never  sighted  a  bird. 

There  is  at  least  one  substantial  reason  at  the 
present  time  for  the  restless  wanderings  of  the 
ostrich,  while  I  am  not  at  all  sure  that  it  does  not 
account  for  their  scarcity  of  numbers  for  the  time 
being  in  the  territory.  It  was  Tsofo  who  first 
drew  my  attention  to  the  marked  scarcity  of 
ostrich  food.  Time  and  again  the  old  man,  who 
knew  this  country  like  a  book,  though  he  had  not 
hunted  in  it  for  more  than  a  year  back,  led  me 
to  places  where  he  knew,  from  past  experience, 
that  there  should  be  good  feeding-ground  for  the 
birds.  But  always  when  we  got  to  these  chosen 
places  where  their  favourite  plants  were  expected 
to  be  abundant,  he  would  look  sadly  about  him,  for 
the  bushes  were  almost  as  bare  as  dead  trees,  and 
scarcely  a  plant  grew  on  the  soil  that  was  not 
burnt  up.  The  good  old  fellow  at  such  times 
bravely  held  his  tongue,  so  that  he  would  not  dis- 
hearten me,  unaware  that  it  was  easy  to  detect 
his  disappointments  and  make  one's  own  deduc- 


SCARCITY  OF  OSTRICH  FOOD  115 

tions.  It  was  not  difficult  to  see  that  the  growth 
was  suffering  from  a  water-famine,  and  when  at  last 
I  taxed  Tsofo  on  the  poor  state  of  the  country,  he 
confessed  his  surprise  at  finding  it  in  such  condi- 
tion, and  said  that  the  cause  must  lie  in  the  fact 
that  no  plentiful  rain  fell  in  the  territory  last  year. 
At  a  later  date  I  happened  to  learn  that  at  Agades 
in  the  same  year — 1919 — small  rainfall  had  oc- 
curred only  on  two  days,  and  there  is  little  doubt 
that  there  was  a  similar  drought  further  south, 
and  that  Tsofo  spoke  the  truth. 

But  nevertheless  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  that  a 
land,  where  so  fierce  a  sun  is  dominant,  can  survive 
without  rainfall  for  almost  two  years  (sometimes, 
the  natives  declare,  they  experience  drought  for 
so  long  as  three  years  in  succession),  and  it  is  little 
wonder  that,  with  such  grim  set-backs  to  existence, 
the  ground  is  largely  barren  and  the  bush-growth 
stunted. 

But  that  the  plants  of  the  earth  do  not  always 
survive,  I  can  vouch  for,  for  when  I  passed  east  of 
the  mountains  of  Tarrouaji  in  Air  later  in  the  year, 
I  saw  there  a  belt  of  standing  acacia  bush,  on  the 
edge  of  mountain  and  desert,  that  was  quite  dead, 
and  to  all  appearance  from  no  other  cause  than 
from  lack  of  nourishment.  It  was  an  eerie  sight 
and  a  desolate  one :  every  bush  dead,  the  limbs 
colourless  and  lifeless,  and  the  bark  hanging  there- 
from in  shreds — a  graveyard,  where  the  struggle  for 
existence  had  been  greater  than  could  be  withstood. 

It  was  not  difficult  to  ascertain  which  plants 
the  ostriches  fed  on  at  the  season  I  was  hunting 
them,  for  one  could  tell  by  the  tracks  in  the  sand 
exactly  where  a  bird  stopped  in  the  act  of  feeding. 


116  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

while  careful  survey  of  the  foliage  further  revealed 
where  pieces  had  been  broken  off.  I  brought 
home  those  plants  that  were  known  to  me  as  food 
of  the  ostrich  so  that  they  might  have  authorita- 
tive identification,  and  I  give  some  notes  on  them 
herewith ;  while  I  am  indebted  to  Dr.  A.  B. 
Rendle,  of  the  British  Museum,  for  their  scientific 
names  : 

1.  Cassia  nr.  obovata  (Leguminosae)  Hausa : 
Filasko.  "  Senegal  Senna."  A  small  low  shrub, 
with  yellow  flowers  and  short  flat  pods,  which 
curve  in  a  quarter  circle  and  have  a  raised  saw- 
edged  rib  down  their  centre.  The  local  natives 
claim  this  plant  to  be  the  one  most  sought  after 
by  ostriches. 

2.  Cucumis  sp.  ( Cucurbit aceae)  Hausa :  Gurji. 
A  small  ground-creeping  gourd,  which  has  often 
long-reaching  trailers.  Ostriches  feed  on  the 
leaves  of  this  plant. 

3.  Mcerua  rigida  R.  Br.  (Capparidacese)  Hausa : 
Chichiwa.  A  small  tree,  with  white  flowers  and 
tiny  elongated  leaves. 

4.  Oxystelma  hornouense  R.  Br.  (Asclepia- 
dacese)  Hausa :  Hanjin  Rago.  A  slender,  climbing 
creeper,  which  flourishes  in  the  topmost  branches 
of  acacia  trees,  there  overreaching  and  having 
green  foliage  in  a  thick  cluster.  When  trees 
are  almost  bare  of  leaves,  as  often  is  the  case  in 
the  dry  season,  the  clumps  of  green  of  this  para- 
site in  the  tree-tops  are  conspicuous  and  easy  to 
find,  which  is  perhaps  a  kind  provision  of  Nature, 
so  that  the  creatures  who  seek  such  food  may  be 
guided  to  it  from  afar.  The  leaves  of  the  plant 
contain  considerable  juice,  and  it  is  the  second 


A  NATIVE  TRAP  117 

favourite  food  of  the  ostrich ;    while  it  is  also  a 
rich  titbit  for  camels,  who  are  very  fond  of  it. 

Native  hunters  of  the  territory  know  those 
plants  well,  and  utilise  the  knowledge  to  secure 
the  downfall  of  many  an  ostrich  ;  for  it  is  where 
they  expect  birds  to  feed  that  they  conceal  the 
traps  that  are  the  only  means  by  which  they  can 
capture  them,  for  ostriches  are  too  wary  to  be 
shot  with  bow  and  arrow.  The  ostrich  trap  is  of 
the  same  kind  as  that  which  the  natives  use  for 
antelope  (and  for  wild  sheep  in  Air),  but  it  is  of  a 
much  larger  size  and  stronger.  It  is  constructed 
in  this  way :  two  wands  about  the  thickness  of 
half  an  inch  are  relaxed  in  hot  water  and  bent  into 
the  form  of  a  complete  circle  which  has  a  diameter 
of  14  in. ;  those  rods  are  bound  at  their  meeting 
points,  and  allowed  to  dry  and  set  in  the  form  of 
a  rigid  hoop,  whereupon  they  are  laid  together, 
while  closely  grouped  hard  unbending  straws, 
about  the  length  of  a  pencil,  are  inserted  between 
them  and  stoutly  bound  in  place  with  strips  of 
bark  ;  all  the  straws  radiate  to  the  inside  centre, 
but  do  not  quite  meet,  so  that,  though  they  are 
held  firmly  on  the  circular  frame,  they  have  no 
support  whatever  where  they  converge  in  the 
centre,  therefore  the  finished  article  is  a  flat  tray 
of  rigid  straws,  which  is  firm  around  the  rim,  but 
is  subject  to  collapse  outward  in  the  centre  if  any 
great  weight  be  put  upon  it.  The  contrivance 
looks  a  simple  enough  thing,  but  there  is  more  in 
the  construction  than  first  appears.  The  trap  is 
for  ostrich,  and  on  that  account  it  is  desirable 
that  smaller  animals  shall  not  "  spring  it,"  and 
the  resourceful  hunters  have  hit  on  the  solution 


118  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

to  a  nicety,  simply  by  increasing  the  thickness  and 
rigidity  of  the  straws,  so  that  they  will  give 
beneath  the  weight  of  an  ostrich,  while  they  will 
remain  undisturbed  beneath  the  footstep  of  a 
gazelle. 

To  set  an  ostrich  trap,  a  hole  is  excavated  in  the 
sand,  say,  beneath  an  acacia  thorn,  which  bears 
an  attractive  cluster  of  the  plant  Oxystelma  horn- 
ouense,  and  exactly  where  it  is  anticipated  a  bird 
will  stand  that  is  intent  on  reaching  the  choice 
foliage ;  this  hole  is  10  to  12  in.  in  diameter,  so 
that  when  the  straw  tray  is  laid  over  it,  the  greater 
part  of  the  surface  lies  over  the  cavity,  while  the 
rim  is  firmly  held  on  the  edge  of  the  pit.  When 
the  tray  is  in  position,  a  very  strong  noose  made 
out  of  plaited  raw-hide  thongs,  and  opened  to  a 
diameter  similar  to  the  rim  of  the  tray,  is  laid 
over  it,  and  the  end  attached  to  a  stout  log :  this 
log  is  buried  beneath  the  sand,  while  the  tray  and 
noose  are  also  concealed  by  smoothing  the  sand 
surface  over  them  until  every  sign  of  disturbance 
of  the  soil  is  obliterated.  If  an  ostrich  chance  to 
visit  the  place,  and  approaches  to  feed  on  the 
small  clump  of  green  leaves,  with  his  eyes  fixed 
upon  the  coveted  morsel,  he  will  almost  certainly 
step  upon  the  concealed  tray;  whereupon  his 
foot  breaks  through  it  into  the  hole,  and  the  noose 
jumps  upward  and  is  around  the  limb  when  the 
unfortunate  bird  hurriedly  withdraws  the  foot 
from  the  hole.  Thus  he  is  caught ;  snared  so 
securely  that,  powerful  bird  though  he  is,  he  has 
no  hope  of  breaking  loose.  He  will  yet  go  a  long 
distance,  but  trailing  the  log  behind  him,  and 
leaving  the  tell-tale   marks    of  it  in  the  sand 


END  OF  A  CHAPTER  OF  ADVERSITY     119 

wherever  he  goes — and  his  captors  will  find  him 
in  the  end. 

17th  March. — Off  again  at  daylight.  But  first 
searched  for  a  Dama  Gazelle  which  I  had 
wounded  at  camp  almost  at  dark  on  the  night 
before,  and  had  been  unable  to  find  it.  Almost 
where  we  had  given  up  tracking  it  on  the  previous 
night  we  found  the  animal's  deathbed,  but  only 
pools  of  blood-discoloured  sand,  and  some  green 
grazings  from  the  stomach,  so  completely  had  the 
animal  been  devoured  in  the  night  by  jackals  and 
hyenas.  I  wanted  to  find  the  head,  for  I  thought 
it  was  a  very  fine  one  when  shooting  at  the  animal, 
and  I  had  all  the  natives  search  the  neighbour- 
hood of  the  kill.  But  so  complete  had  been  the 
meal  of  the  night-prowlers,  that  not  a  vestige  of 
anything  was  found  except  one  solitary  piece  of 
shoulder-blade. 

To-day  travelled  south-east,  but  in  morning 
nothing  seen  except  gazelle.  However,  about 
10  a.m.,  advancing  cautiously  over  a  low  ridge, 
I  saw  at  last  a  single  ostrich ;  but  the  sharp-eyed 
brute  saw  me  at  the  same  time  also,  and  cleared 
right  away,  very  wild.  The  sun  was  now  blazing 
hot,  but  we  had  to  keep  going  incessantly,  as  the 
water-skins  were  almost  empty,  and  we  had  a  long 
way  to  go  to  reach  Takoukout  before  sundown. 

About  noon  again  sighted  ostriches —three  of 
them  away  to  the  west  in  fairly  open  country. 
Made  long  stalk,  keeping  out  of  sight  in  the  slight 
hollows,  but  could  not  overtake  the  birds,  as  they 
were  moving  too  rapidly;  followed  them  a  long 
way,  but  finally  had  to  give  up.  Throughout  the 
remainder  of  the  day  no  more  birds  were  seen. 


120  OSTRICH   HUNTING 

and  we  reached  Takoukout  at  sundown,  after 
being  three  days  in  the  bush,  and  having  seen,  in 
that  time,  but  four  ostriches,  distant  and  wild. 
Very  glad  to  get  into  camp;  our  water  was 
finished,  and  all  were  very  done  up  with  the 
excessive  heat.  The  poor  horses  drank  till  I 
thought  they  would  collapse. 

20th  and  21st  March. — ^Two  fruitless  days  hunt- 
ing for  ostrich.  Not  a  bird  seen.  Travelled 
north,  then  west  to  Eleki,  and  returned  to  camp 
on  second  day.  Brought  back  one  Dama  Gazelle, 
two  Dorcas  Gazelles,  one  partridge,  and  four 
small  specimens. 

I  have  endeavoured  to  give  an  idea  of  hard 
hunting  in  a  dreary  belt  of  country,  and  beneath 
a  pitiless  sun,  where  the  reward  desired  was 
withheld  to  the  bitter  end.  It  is  a  chapter  of 
adversity,  such  as  we  all  meet  at  some  time 
or  other  in  our  experiences  of  life,  but  may  still 
hold  some  value,  even  although  the  chief  pursuit 
devolved  in  failure. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

LEAVING  THE  BUSHLAND  BEHIND  :  AIR  ENTERED 

On  29th  March  my  Takoukout  camp  was  dis- 
mantled, and  everything  packed  up  in  readiness 
to  continue  farther  on  into  the  interior,  where 
Agades,  in  Air,  I  hoped  would  be  my  next  place 
of  halt. 

My  stay  at  Takoukout  had  been  the  least 
profitable  of  camping  places.  It  is  true  it  was 
not  territory  where  bird  life  was  plentiful,  but 
results  would  have  been  better  if  ostrich  hunting 
had  not  taken  up  the  greater  part  of  my  time. 

At  this  date  my  total  collections  numbered  485 
birds  and  121  mammals,  as  well  as  374  butterflies 
and  138  moths ;  and,  of  those,  58  birds  were  taken 
at  Takoukout  and  8  mammals,  including  three 
complete  gazelles  (not  merely  the  head  and  horns, 
but  the  whole  animal). 

At  the  end  of  my  stay  at  Takoukout  I  lost  the 
services  of  Sakari.  He  had  grown  less  and  less 
inclined  to  follow  the  arduous  life  I  led  him, 
whilst  he  had  developed  a  hankering  to  be  back 
amongst  the  companionship  of  his  own  people. 
Moreover,  he  had  now  a  better  idea  of  the  stern 
conditions  which  the  nature  of  the  country  im- 
posed— conditions  that  promised  to  grow  worse 

10  121 


122  AIR    ENTERED 

rather  than  better — and  plainly  he  did  not  relish 
the  prospect  of  what  lay  ahead.  His  three  ex- 
periences of  being  lost  in  the  bush,  which  I  refer 
to  in  the  preceding  chapter,  did  not  tend  to  help 
matters,  and,  finally,  seeing  that  his  heart  was  no 
longer  in  his  work,  I  considered  it  advisable  to  pay 
him  off  and  send  him  back,  though  I  was  very  sorry 
to  lose  him,  since  his  departure  left  me  without  any 
one  to  assist  in  the  task  of  skinning  specimens. 

I  bid  good-bye,  also,  to  the  old  hunter  Tsofo, 
who  had  joined  me  for  the  period  that  I  hunted 
at  Takoukout,  so  that  I  might  have  the  assistance 
of  his  local  knowledge.  He  had  never  been  to 
Air,  and,  therefore,  could  not  aid  me  in  the  same 
way  further  on  ;  a  circumstance  which  I  think 
we  both  regretted,  for  the  old  fellow  was  genuinely 
loath  to  go  home,  and  I  sorry  to  lose  him.  There 
had  always  been  plenty  of  buck-meat  in  camp,  and 
the  old  fellow  had  never  wanted  food,  which  was 
a  state  of  affairs  that  greatly  pleased  him,  for 
he  had  close  acquaintance  with  poverty  in  the 
ordinary  round  of  living  in  this  poverty-stricken 
land. 

John,  therefore,  was  the  only  personal  servant 
to  go  on  with  me  to  Air — ^faithful,  cheerful  John, 
who  did  not  care  two  straws  where  he  went,  so 
long  as  he  had  his  master  with  him. 

Therefore  John  and  the  camel-men  were  all 
that  composed  my  following  on  the  way  to  Agades, 
while  the  caravan  was  accompanied  by  the  escort 
of  six  native  soldiers,  who  had  been  detailed  by 
the  officer  at  Tanout  to  escort  me  as  far  as  Ader- 
bissinat,  where  there  was  a  small  Fort  midway 
on  my  journey. 


TRAVEL  BY  NIGHT  128 

I  intended  to  leave  Takoukout  on  the  night  of 
the  30th,  for  the  moon  was  full  and  opportune  for 
night  travel. 

The  day  was  employed  proportioning  loads  and 
securely  roping  them,  when  sufficient  rope  had 
been  found,  for  it  is  astonishing  how  such  things 
disappear  in  the  careless  hands  of  natives  during 
a  month  in  camp,  and  on  this  occasion,  when 
packages  came  to  be  made  up,  many  ropes  were 
short  and  others  destroyed  by  white  ants.  As 
there  was  no  longer  village  nor  market-place  where 
such  native  commodities  could  be  purchased, 
there  was  no  alternative  but  to  insist  that  the 
camel-men  search  the  bush  for  suitable  tree-bark 
which  could  be  plaited  into  rude  cords  ;  and  this 
task  kept  the  men  fully  employed  all  afternoon. 

With  the  aid  of  the  light  of  the  moon  and 
brightly  blazing  camp-fires,  the  camels  were  loaded 
up  about  11  p.m.,  and  we  filed  out  of  the  old  stock- 
ade, which  had  been  home  for  almost  a  month,  and 
made  slowly  off  into  the  shadowy  bush. 

Night  travel  always  holds  for  me  an  element  of 
adventure,  and  it  is  not  without  livening  and 
keenly  alert  senses  that  one  advances  into  the 
unknown  in  the  dark  in  the  wake  of  some  dusky 
leader  who  has  none  of  the  apprehension  which 
the  tendency  to  blindness  produces  in  the  stranger 
who  is  ignorant  of  the  lie  of  the  land  ahead. 
Under  such  circumstances  night  travel  also  holds 
novelty,  and,  although  one  loses  the  opportunity 
to  view  the  landscape  as  one  passes  along,  there  is 
a  freshening  of  the  senses  that  makes  ample 
compensation  :  I  am  aware  that  it  is  cool,  and 
that  in  consequence  it  is  good  to  be  out  in  those 


124  AIR    ENTERED 

common  hours  of  sleep ;  I  observe  the  gaunt 
outline  of  the  phantom-like  camels  that  advance 
without  sound  of  foot-fall ;  I  see  the  shadows  of 
low  trees  that  ever  change  their  shapes  as  we 
wend  our  course  in  and  out  among  them  over  the 
gleaming  moonlit  ways  of  sand ;  I  hear,  some- 
times, the  low  soft  speech  of  the  camel-man  in 
consultation,  followed,  as  a  rule,  by  the  caravan 
being  halted  and  the  discordant  roar  of  a  camel, 
which  jars  on  the  calm  night  stillness,  while  the 
men  are  righting  a  load;  .  .  .  afterwards  silence 
is  regained,  and  we  are  as  a  part  of  the  brooding 
night,  the  camels  padding  along  quite  noiselessly 
in  the  sand,  and  there  is  naught  that  I  can  hear 
but  the  slight  creaking  of  a  load  that  rests  un- 
easily on  a  pack-saddle,  and  the  gritty  scrape  of 
the  hard-skin  sandals  of  a  shuffling  camel-man 
near  me. 

When  the  moon  went  down  about  3  a.m.,  we 
camped  for  a  few  hours  in  the  bush,  off-loading 
the  camels  and  lying  down  to  rest  on  the  bare 
ground  without  troubling  to  unpack  blankets. 

At  daybreak,  6  a.m.,  the  journey  was  resumed, 
and  we  camped  at  the  well  known  as  Tchingara- 
guen  about  noon,  having  travelled  25  miles  since 
we  broke  camp. 

On  the  following  day  we  again  travelled  a  long 
distance,  camping  by  the  light  of  the  moon,  about 
9  p.m.,  at  the  well  named  Tadelaka,  being  then 
only  about  10  miles  short  of  the  small  outpost 
at  Aderbissinat.  Throughout  the  day  the  type 
of  bush  country  continued  the  same,  in  aspect 
and  insomuch  that  there  was  no  visible  sign  that 
it  is  inhabited,  though  we  are  aware  that  there  are 


A    LOXELY    TUAREG    CAMP    IX    THE    BUSH. 


SUNDOWN    IN    THE    DESERT. 


134] 


THE  PRESTIGE  OF  WHITE  MEN        125 

a  few  Tuaregs,  and  their  herds  hidden  in  the  in- 
scrutable land  somewhere. 

Next  morning,  2nd  April,  we  made  the  short 
journey  to  Aderbissinat  and  halted  for  the  day. 

What  a  strange  place  Aderbissinat  is  :  the  whole 
no  larger  than  a  small  farm-dwelling  enclosed 
within  a  square  zareba,  which  might  be  the  fence 
of  a  crofter's  garden,  while  immediately  outside 
are  the  wells  and  one  or  two  temporary  native 
shelters.  About  the  wells  are  grouped  some  lean 
listless  cattle  and  goats,  and  some  tired  donkeys 
and  camels  belonging  to  passing  caravans.  How 
well  they  fit  the  desolate  scene!  Listen  to 
the  plaintive  lowing  of  the  thirsty  cattle,  not  the 
common  cry  of  a  domestic  beast,  but  a  wild 
strange  sound  peculiar  to  the  land — a  deep 
rumbling  forced-out  bellow  that  tails  away  with 
terrible  insistency  to  a  wail  of  want  so  clear  and 
expressive  in  sound  that  even  humans  can  easily 
comprehend  that  the  animals  are  in  dire  distress. 
The  simple  unadorned  scene,  which  is  but  a  tiny 
speck  of  habitation  in  a  boundless  virgin  space, 
lies  in  a  hollow,  so  that  approaching  it  either  from 
the  south  or  the  north  one  is  almost  upon  it  before 
it  is  discovered. 

If  any  of  my  fellow-men  should  ever  doubt  the 
constancy  of  the  old-fashioned  prestige  of  the 
white  race  in  Africa,  which  goes  to  uphold  peace 
in  the  wildest  comers  of  the  continent,  I  should 
like  to  direct  their  attention  to  such  a  place  as 
this.  Aderbissinat  stands  alone  in  one  of  the 
bleakest  spots  that  could  well  be  imagined,  and 
isolated  to  such  an  extent  that,  if  it  happened  to 
be  attacked,  it  might  easily  be  wiped  out  in  a  night 


126  AIR    ENTERED 

and  its  nearest  neighbour  remain  in  ignorance  of 
the  fact  for  days — ^Tanout  lies  75 J  miles  south, 
and  Agades  93|  miles  north,  while  both  flanks  are 
open  to  unlimited  unguarded  ranges.  Yet  all  the 
force  within  this  tiny  Fort  is  one  French  officer 
and  one  sergeant,  and  a  mere  handful  of  native 
troops.  Is  it  conceivable  that  it  is  such  a  force  as 
this  that  intimidates  the  unreliable  natives  of  the 
immediate  neighbourhood  to  uphold  peacefulness, 
or  that  keeps  away  the  powerful  bands  of  robbers 
from  the  north  ?  I  think  not ;  rather  is  the  cause 
to  be  found  in  native  tradition  of  the  prowess  of 
the  white  race,  and  their  far-reaching  rule.  It  is 
not  of  an  immediate  act  of  rashness  that  the  usual 
native  fanatic  is  afraid,  but  of  the  inevitable  con- 
sequences that  they  know  would  sweep  in  upon 
them  once  they  had  raised  the  white  man's  wrath. 
So  that,  in  a  broad  sense,  it  is  simply  this  tradition 
of  great  power  that  safeguards  Aderbissinat,  and 
other  undermanned  posts  of  the  kind  that  are 
dreadfully  remote  yet  not  hopelessly  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  long  arm  of  justice ;  and  therefore 
Tradition  represents  an  unseen  strength  that  is 
unrecorded  on  any  roll,  yet  is  reliable  and  useful 
as  an  army  of  men,  impotent  though  it  be  except 
in  significant  influence. 

Diminutive  though  it  is,  Aderbissinat  Fort 
serves  more  than  one  purpose:  it  guards  a  precious 
store  of  water  on  the  edge  of  the  desert,  which 
furnishes  half  the  water-supply  that  is  necessary 
for  caravans  to  carry  on  the  journey  to  Agades, 
for  the  intervening  desert  is  waterless  except  for 
one  well  at  Abellama ;  it  serves  as  a  blockhouse 
half    way    between    Tanout    and    Agades,    and 


ADERBISSINAT  FORT  127 

therefore  is  protection  to  the  highway  ;  while  it 
is  also  an  important  relay  and  checking  station 
for  the  transport  of  the  large  supplies,  chiefly 
grain,  that  are  constantly  going  north  to  Agades 
to  feed  the  considerable  forces  that  are  stationed 
there.  Native  escort,  on  foot,  invariably  accom- 
panies those  caravans  of  supplies,  and  the  duty, 
burdened  with  rifle  and  accoutrements,  is  a  very 
hard  one  in  such  a  climate  ;  so  much  so,  that  it  is 
only  by  a  series  of  relays  that  the  escort  for  the 
total  journey  is  successfully  maintained.  Thus, 
escort  from  Tanout  is  relieved  at  Aderbissinat,  and 
fresh  men  take  on  the  journey  to  Agades.  Also, 
on  occasions,  the  animals  of  a  caravan  are  changed 
at  Aderbissinat  and, others  complete  the  journey. 

Therefore,  when  all  things  are  considered, 
Aderbissinat  is  of  much  importance  to  the  trans- 
port of  the  country,  and  to  the  existence  of  Agades, 
and  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  it  has  always  held 
something  of  this  importance  as  an  outlying  gate- 
way to  Air,  for  all  Tuaregs,  whether  old  or  young, 
claim  it  to  be  within  the  southern  boundary  of 
their  territory,  though  it  is  fully  100  miles  from 
the  foot  of  the  Air  mountains  ;  and  no  doubt  it 
is  in  consequence  of  their  claim  that  the  French 
authorities  recognise  it  as  within  Air  at  the  present 
time. 

There  are  five  caravan  stages  between  Aderbis- 
sinat and  Agades,  known  to  the  natives  as  Tim- 
boulaga,  Tessalatin,  Abellama,  Tegguidi,  and 
Tilaraderas.  The  camping-ground  known  as 
Timboulaga  is  within  the  bush-belt,  but  the  others 
are  all  in  the  open  desert,  which  commences 
about  19  miles  north  of  Aderbissinat. 


128  AIR   ENTERED 

I  continued  my  journey  on  the  following  day, 
leaving  Aderbissinat  in  the  cool  of  the  late 
afternoon,  and  utilising  the  kindly  moon  to 
light  us  on  our  way  until  camping-ground  was 
chosen,  about  midnight,  some  distance  beyond 
Timboulaga. 

On  the  next  day,  which  was  a  Sunday  (4th 
April),  we  again  did  not  move  until  the  afternoon, 
while  the  camels,  fifteen  of  them,  were  turned  out 
in  the  bush  to  partake  of  a  good  meal,  as  fodder 
promised  to  be  less  plentiful  ahead.  Under 
suitable  conditions,  camels  should  be  allowed  to 
graze  at  least  five  or  six  hours  each  day  after  halt 
is  made. 

Early  in  the  day  I  shot  two  gazelles  to  augment 
the  food  supplies  of  the  natives,  and  put  in  rather 
an  uncomfortable  time  thereafter,  for,  when  the 
sun  rose  high  overhead,  we  were  left  without 
shade,  and  enjoyable  rest  was  thereby  impossible. 
In  the  full  midday  hours  the  sun  is  so  directly 
overhead,  that  on  no  side  of  the  dwarf,  thin- 
leaved  bush  is  there  shade,  which  is  a  circum- 
stance that  reminds  me  to  recount  the  wisdom  of 
my  camels,  for,  if  the  tired  beasts  happen  to  be  off 
loaded  about  that  time  of  day,  they  all  proceed 
to  select,  with  perfect  knowledge  and  precision, 
the  north-east  side  of  the  thickest  bush  available, 
thus  choosing  resting-places  exactly  where  shade 
will  be  thrown  later  on  when  the  sun  commences 
to  swing  into  the  west. 

I  had  intended  to  travel  again  at  night,  but  the 
sun  became  so  irksome,  that  I  grew  very  restless, 
and  about  2  p.m.  was  glad  to  call  the  camels  in 
and  start  loading  up,  even  though  it  entailed 


DESOLATE  DESERT  129 

unpleasant  labour  for  the  camel-men  in  the  intense 
heat. 

Three  hours  after  leaving  Timboulaga  we 
ascended  perceptibly  to  country  of  changed  aspect, 
where  the  land  was  a  desert  of  sand-dunes,  and 
sand-pockets,  and  level  pools  of  small  gravel. 
This  was  the  beginning  of  the  desert,  and  the  end 
of  earth's  fertility ;  behind  lay  the  bush  that 
struggled  for  a  patchy  existence  in  an  ungenerous 
soil,  which  was  a  circumstance  sad  enough,  yet 
infinitely  more  blessed  did  that  barely  clad 
beggary  seem  when  compared  with  the  awful 
desolate  deadness  of  desert,  which  was,  in  general, 
unable  to  support  life  altogether. 

On  this  night  we  camped  at  Tessalatin,  which 
was  but  a  name  in  a  drear  level  land  of  sand.  The 
altitude  there  was  1,875  ft.,  225  ft.  above  Ader- 
bissinat,  which  now  lay  31  miles  behind. 

On  the  following  day  we  left  camp  at  3.30  p.m. 
and  camped  at  Abellama  about  11  p.m.  Through- 
out the  journey  we  travelled  over  level  desert — 
desert  cloudless  and  pale  as  the  sky,  but  of  a 
huffish  or  khaki  tone,  and  in  places  covered  with 
tussocks  of  hardy  grass,  which  catch  and  hold  the 
loose  sands  that  are  the  sweepings  of  the  wind,  so 
that  they  bank  up  in  mounds  and  wave-crests,  and 
bear  the  appearance  of  sand-dunes  on  the  sea- 
shore. Here  and  there  a  tiny  thorn  bush,  alone 
and  hardly  living ;  at  other  times,  a  scattered 
group  of  bushes  that  find  existence  possible  and  a 
little  easier,  since  they  are  banded  together,  and 
each  protecting  the  other  from  exposure  to  the 
onslaught  of  withering  sand-storms.  After  cross- 
^^g  3,  gradual  rise  to  a  height  of  land  about  mid- 


130  AIR   ENTERED 

journey  to-day,  we  began  a  slight  descent  toward 
Abellama  (alt.,  1,700  ft.),  where  there  is  a  deep 
well  which  is  said  to  be  as  ancient  as  the  old 
caravan  roads  across  Africa,  and  which  is  the  only 
place  where  water  is  to  be  found  between  Ader- 
bissinat  and  Agades  ;  so  that,  though  drear  and 
comfortless  and  lacking  in  everything  that  is 
picturesque,  Abellama  is  a  name  that  is  con- 
jured with  by  weary  men  of  the  caravans  that 
travel  there  thirsting  for  water  and  sorely  in  need 
of  replenishing  the  precious  store  that  for  some 
days  has  been  slowly  diminishing  in  sagging  goat- 
skins. 

At  Abellama,  as  there  was  no  shady  bush  to 
camp  beside,  I  resorted  to  rigging  up  the  baggage 
tarpaulin  in  the  open  desert,  and  camped  under  a 
few  feet  of  shade  like  the  veriest  gipsy  Tuareg. 

As  the  months  advance,  so  is  the  temperature 
increasing,  and  now  that  there  was  less  protection 
than  ever  from  the  sun,  it  seemed  to  me  that  I  was 
experiencing  greater  heat  than  I  had  ever  known, 
and  heat  that  was  terribly  exhausting. 

The  cause  of  the  exceedingly  fierce  temperature 
(105°  Fahr.  to-day  in  the  shade)  may  be  ac- 
counted for  in  the  fact  that  the  sand  is  a  ready 
medium  for  holding  and  reflecting  the  heat  of  the 
sun.  As  an  example  of  this  :  if  a  man  sit  on  a 
camel  for  sometime,  withfeet  dangling  downwards, 
the  sole-leather  of  boot  or  shoe  or  sandal,  which 
is  facing  the  sand  and  not  the  sun,  becomes  so 
heated  that  the  feet  are  vastly  uncomfortable, 
while  if  he  should  dismount  and  place  weight 
upon  them,  the  soles  will  be  found  to  be  so  burning 
hot  that  he  will  exclaim  with  pain. 


HEAT  AND  ILLNESS  181 

When  evening  came  on  this  day,  the  caravan 
did  not  move  off,  as  I  had  intended,  for  a  change 
had  come  over  me,  and,  for  the  first  time,  I  felt  too 
weak  to  go  on.  Dysentery  and  fever  were  upon 
me,  illness  which  seemed  to  be  the  outcome  of 
some  kind  of  mild  sunstroke,  for  I  was  quite  dizzy 
and  confused.  The  night's  rest  helped  me  little, 
and  I  spent  the  next  day  also  in  camp,  feeling  very 
miserable  in  my  hot,  improvised  shelter.  It  was 
a  bad  place  to  be  caught  ill  in — no  restful  shade 
at  hand,  not  even  scraggy  bush,  indeed,  hardly 
enough  wood  to  make  a  camp-fire  ;  nothing  but 
wastes  of  dreary  sun-bleached  desert.  One  lay  all 
day  and  almost  panted  in  the  heat,  and  thanked 
God  with  a  deep  sigh  of  relief  when  the  sun  went 
down. 

At  the  end  of  the  second  day  I  felt  I  must 
make  an  effort  to  move  on,  and  therefore  called 
John  and  the  camel-men  to  my  couch  upon  the 
sand,  and  bade  them  prepare  to  start  at  midnight, 
even  if  it  was  found  necessary  to  rope  me  to  my 
camel  so  that  I  should  not  collapse  and  fall  to  the 
ground  from  weakness.  This  resolution  was 
carried  out,  and  about  1  a.m.  the  caravan  was 
en  route  under  the  blessed  coolness  of  the  night, 
and  aided  by  the  light  of  the  moon,  which  rose 
about  the  time  the  men  commenced  to  load  up 
the  camels. 

Tegguidi  was  reached  not  long  after  daylight, 
which  enabled  the  caravan  to  negotiate  the  rough 
descent  of  the  Pass  in  the  cliff  that  is  there  with- 
out serious  mishap  to  the  loads,  and  we  camped  in 
due  course  on  the  flat  plain  that  lay  below.  By 
which  time  I  felt  somewhat  better,  though  I  did 


132  AIR    ENTERED 

not  completely  recover  until  some  days  later,  when 
privileged  to  rest  and  shelter  in  a  cool  mud-house 
at  Agades. 

The  abrupt  change  in  elevation  which  occurs  at 
Tegguidi  is  very  remarkable  and  the  cliff  the  most 
unique  geological  occurrence  that  I  had  thus  far 
seen.  It  is  a  striking  line  of  sheer  cliff,  which  is  very 
rugged  in  countenance,  while  at  the  base  there  are 
bankings  and  columns  of  detached  rock  and  huge 
boulders.  Advancing  from  the  south,  no  sign  of 
the  cliff  is  visible  until  you  arrive  almost  at 
the  very  edge  of  it,  and  look  down  over  the  grim 
countenance  that  faces  the  north,  and  out  upon 
the  pale  sand-plains  that  stretch  away  from  a 
level  200  ft.  below.  One  is  forcibly  reminded  of 
the  open  sea  and  rugged  coast  that  stems  the 
tide,  for  the  whole  formation,  stretching  east 
and  west  as  far  as  eye  can  see,  is  like  to  the  cliffs 
of  the  sea-shore,  and  one  wonders  in  what  age 
and  by  what  force  of  elements  it  was  fashioned 
to  be  so  complete  a  barrier,  and  if  it  holds  some 
strange  geological  secret. 

Tegguidi  cliff  is  of  interest  to  sportsmen,  for  a 
few  Barbary  sheep  are  to  be  found  there,  while 
I  received  reliable  reports  of  one  or  two  lions  seen 
in  the  vicinity  (probably  the  rare  nameless  beast), 
which  is  quite  feasible,  as  there  is  a  tiny  spring  of 
water  at  a  point  known  as  Irhayen  further  east  on 
the  same  cliff. 

A  comfortless  day  was  put  in  at  Tegguidi,  trying 
to  rest  as  best  we  could  lying  out  on  the  bare  plain 
as  before,  while  the  camels  foraged  for  thriftless 
pickings. 

With  the  advent  of  the  moon  we  thankfully 


DREAR  COUNTRY  188 

stole  away  from  the  place  in  the  middle  of  the 
night. 

When  day  broke,  the  caravan  did  not  camp,  for, 
anxious  on  account  of  my  health  and  our  small 
water  store,  I  kept  moving  on  until  2.30  p.m.,  when 
we  camped  about  11  miles  from  Agades,  after 
having  been  thirteen  hours  on  the  march.  Desert 
was  crossed  throughout  the  journey,  dreary 
country  of  sand-dunes  and  great  flat  stretches 
of  sand,  with  occasional  gravel  rises,  which  were 
sometimes  buff  like  the  sand  and  sometimes  grey, 
but  the  pebbles  always  as  level  and  neat  as  if  set 
in  place  by  the  hands  of  skilful  workmen.  During 
the  journey  there  was  practically  no  change  in 
elevation,  which  remained  about  1,600  ft. 

Again  we  snatched  brief  rest  in  the  early  part  of 
the  night  and  then  travelled  on  to  Agades,  reach- 
ing our  destination  on  the  morning  of  the  sixth  day 
of  travel  (10th  April),  every  man  and  beast  of  the 
caravan  dreadfully  tired  ;  not  because  of  the  dis- 
tance we  had  come,  93  miles,  but  on  account  of  the 
ravaging  sun,  and  for  want  of  adequate  sleep  and 
proper  food  and  water. 

A  note  in  my  diary  at  this  time  reads  :  "  It  is 
uncanny  land  to  travel  through — barren  of  every- 
thing—dead like  the  ashes  of  a  furnace  fire—in 
no  way  beautiful,  in  nothing  inspiring.  ...  I  was 
really  glad  when  I  entered  Agades." 


CHAPTER     IX 

AGADES 

Agades  is  not,  as  one  might  imagine  from  a  glance 
at  the  map,  close  under  the  Air  mountains,  but  is 
well  out  from  them,  and  situated  on  the  border  of 
the  desert.  From  Agades  the  low  foothills  of  the 
mountains,  not  a  continuous  range,  but  individual 
elevations,  with  gaps  between,  are  visible,  blue  in 
the  distance,  in  the  north,  over  some  low  acacia 
and  evergreen  "  Abisgee"  (Hausa)  bush,  which  is 
growing,  not  far  away,  along  a  wide,  very  shallow 
river-bed  that  holds  water  but  for  a  day  or  two 
during  the  surface  rush  of  water  that  follows  the 
rare  torrential  bursts  of  rain  which  sometimes 
occur  in  July  or  August. 

It  is  a  very  great  pleasure  to  sight  those  hills  ;  to 
feast  eyes  that  are  weary  of  looking  over  limitless 
space  upon  this  tangible  promise  of  new  and 
wonderful  scene,  already  touched  with  the  rest- 
fulness  of  the  greys  and  browns  of  mountain  slopes 
that  cannot  be  altogether  robbed  of  their  richness 
by  the  blinding  glare  of  overbold  sunlight.  Great 
is  the  contrast  between  mountain  and  desert,  but 
greater  still  the  change  after  the  long,  long  jour- 
ney through  the  featureless  land  to  the  south,  for 
from  the  seaboard  on  the  West  Coast,  from  Lagos 

134 


THE  SURROUNDINGS  OF  AGADES       185 

to  Agades,  there  is  no  majestic  range  of  like  kind 
to  those  mountains  of  Air. 

Agades  is  an  ancient  town ;  not  large,  not 
encircled  by  a  great  wall,  not  imposing,  except 
for  the  high  tapering  tower  of  the  old  Mohamme- 
dan mosque  which  stands  sentinel  above  every- 
thing in  the  land.  It  is,  indeed,  not  much  more 
than  a  cluster  of  clay-built  tiny  dwellings  that 
crouch  tenaciously  upon  the  desert  to  exist  as 
best  they  can  amid  driving  winds  and  drifting 
sands  that  sweep  over  a  landscape  that  is  as  open 
as  the  sea.  Therefore,  in  truth,  Agades  to-day 
bears  much  of  the  woeful  appearance  of  an  out- 
cast, and  stands  on  a  site  of  singular  choice  in 
surroundings  over-barren  to  adequately  support 
the  inhabitants,  who  gain  most  of  their  livelihood 
far  afield  on  the  caravan  routes. 

Yet  Dr.  Barth,  who  passed  through  Air  70  years 
ago,  wrote  of  Agades,  with  reference  to  its  notable 
position  in  African  history  :  "  It  is  by  the  merest 
accident  that  this  town  has  not  attracted  as  much 
interest  in  Europe  as  her  sister  town  Timbuktu."  ^ 

But  the  hey-day  of  the  greatness  of  Agades  is 
past,  though  it  is  still  a  name  of  fame  known  to 
every  native  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
the  western  Sahara,  which  renown  it  has  attained 
since  it  has  long  been  a  place  of  importance  on  one 
of  the  great  caravan  routes  across  Africa,  and  in 
olden  times,  as  the  chief  town  of  Air,  was  a  famous 
place  where  pilgrims  journeying  to  and  fro  from 
Mecca  halted  and  forgathered.  Very,  very 
old  is  Agades,  and  one  cannot  well  conceive  the 
changes  that  have  taken  place  since  its  beginning, 

^  Barth's  Travels  in  Central  Africa.    Vol.  i,  p.  870. 


136  AGADES 

yet  I  am  prone  to  think  that  the  land,  at  least, 
was  more  fertile,  less  sand-enveloped  than  to- 
day, and  offered  less  hardship  to  existence,  for 
there  is  remarkable  evidence  of  decline  in  the 
population  of  Air ;  a  decline  which  has  appar- 
ently been  devolving  very  slowly,  to  judge  by  Dr. 
Earth's  remarks  concerning  Agades  in  1850 — 
remarks  which  strangely  enough  could  be  applied 
with  equal  accuracy  as  it  appears  to-day.  "  The 
streets  and  the  market-places  were  still  empty 
when  we  went  through  them,  which  left  upon  me 
the  impression  of  a  deserted  place  of  bygone 
times  ;  for  even  in  the  most  important  and  central 
quarter  of  the  town  most  of  the  dwelling-houses 
were  in  ruins."  ^  A  concluding  remark  in  my  own 
diary  of  1920  reads  :  "...  but  it  is  a  sad  place, 
belonging  to  an  age  of  the  Past;  half-deserted, 
half-dead ;  full  of  the  melancholy  of  the  lone 
land  which  surrounds  it."  Though  70  years 
separate  those  two  descriptions  of  the  atmosphere 
of  Agades,  they  are  strangely  alike  in  fact. 

But  to  come  down  to  recent  times,  Agades  was 
occupied  by  the  French  in  1904  (16  years  ago). 
In  that  year  a  military  mission  joined  in  with  the 
great  caravan  of  thousands  of  camels  that  once  a 
year,  at  the  time  of  the  Rains  when  desert  travel  is 
possible,  journey  to  the  oasis  of  Fachi  and  Bilma, 
east  of  Air,  to  bring  back  to  Hausaland  a  great 
store  of  salt  obtained  from  salt-springs  there. 
This  mission  left  Zinder  in  August  and  reached 
Agades  on  12th  September,  where  it  met  with  a 
friendly  reception.  In  time  a  small  pill-box  of  a 
fort  was  established  about  a  mile  north  of  the 

1  Dr.  Barth's  Travels  in  Central  Africa.    Vol.  i,  p.  399. 


A  STRONG  GARRISON  137 

native  town,  which,  by  the  way^  was  the  one  which 
withstood  siege  during  the  Rising  of  1916,  under 
the  leadership  of  the  northern  rebel  Kaossen,  and 
Tegama,  the  traitor  Sultan  of  Agades.  Since  then 
a  large  fort,  many  times  the  size  of  the  original, 
has  been  erected  about  the  old  building,  and 
equipped  with  modern  weapons  of  war  erven  to 
the  inclusion  of  a  wireless  plant  which  receives 
daily  news  from  Lyon,  via  Zinder. 

Besides  the  Fort  at  Agades,  there  is  also  a  strong 
camel  corps  maintained  in  the  territory.  On 
occasions  this  mobile  force  is  camped  at  Agades, 
but  more  often  it  is  forced  to  move  from  place  to 
place  along  the  borders  of  the  desert,  so  that 
fodder  may  be  found  sufficient  for  the  needs  of 
the  large  number  of  camels. 

Altogether  the  military  force  at  Agades  is  a 
powerful  one,  which  is  due  to  the  need  that  exists 
to  combat  and  confound  the  constant  depredations 
of  armed  robbers.  Strange  though  it  may  seem  in 
those  modern  times,  Agades  to-day  is  the  centre 
of  continual  skirmishing  activity,  and  Air  the 
happy  hunting-ground  of  daring  bands  of  robbers, 
who  descend  upon  it  in  search  of  such  loot  as 
camels,  and  goat  herds,  and  young  men  and 
women  to  serve  as  slaves.  Hogar  and  Tebu 
robbers  are  the  most  notorious  and  persistent 
miscreants  to  visit  Air  at  the  present  time,  but 
others  from  even  greater  distances  are  not  un- 
known. For  instance,  last  year  (1919)  the  terri- 
tory was  visited  by  a  band  of  the  Requeibat 
tribe,  said  to  be  some  200  strong,  from  Cape  Juby 
in  the  Spanish  possessions  of  Morocco. 

But  later  on  I  will  deal  more  fully  with  the 
U 


1S8  AGADES 

subject  of  robbers,  which  I  have  brought  up  here 
for  a  moment,  since  it  has  important  bearing  on 
the  miHtary  composition  of  Agades. 

The  troops  at  Agades,  or  elsewhere  in  the 
Territoire  MiHtaire,  are  chiefly  Senegalese  natives, 
while  there  is  also  a  scouting  force  of  camel- 
mounted  goumiers,  composed  of  local  Tuaregs. 
Altogether  there  are  eleven  Europeans  at  Agades 
— ^French  officers  and  N.C.O.s  of  the  regular 
Colonial  Service. 

In  the  old  town,  apart  from  the  Fort,  there  is  a 
civic  population  of  some  1,400  Tuaregs,  and,  in 
addition,  some  Hausa  traders  from  the  south,  and 
an  Arab  or  two  from  the  north. 

At  the  time  of  my  visit  food  was  remarkably 
scarce  among  the  natives  of  Agades,  and  they 
were  actually  living  from  hand  to  mouth  almost 
in  a  state  of  famine,  though  there  was  still  three 
months  to  run  before  the  Rains  were  due  which 
promised  new  grain  crops  and  new  grazing  for  the 
herds.  But,  from  all  accounts,  scant  rations  and 
poverty  may  be  associated  with  Agades  at  most 
times,  and  far  out  on  the  caravan  routes  the 
traveller  is  warned  that  there  is  "  nothing  to  eat  at 
Agades,"  while  the  native  soldiers,  who  get  the 
best  that  is  going  under  any  circumstances, 
obviously  dread  being  detailed  for  service  there 
on  account  of  its  impoverished  condition.  On 
my  way  north,  one  of  the  senior  officers  at  Zinder, 
speaking  of  the  white  men  at  Agades,  remarked  to 
me  :  "  The  climate,  it  is  good  ;  we  have  men  there 
who  are  strong  ;  but,  oh  !  they  are  not  fat. — ^Ah, 
no  I  they  are  not  fat." 

The  fact  of  the  matter  is,  Air,  at  the  present 


GREAT   SCARCITY  OF  FOOD  139 

time,  is  far  from  self-supporting  in  what  she 
produces.  This,  in  part,  appears  to  be  due  to  the 
barren  nature  of  the  country,  and  to  lack  of  rains, 
but  to  a  certain  extent  I  believe  it  to  be  due  to 
the  indolent  nature  of  the  Tuareg  inhabitants, 
who  are  essentially  wandering  fickle  nomads,  and 
not  ardent  toilers  in  the  fields. 

Of  food-stuffs.  Air  produces  goat  herds  which 
furnish  the  people  with  a  certain  amount  of 
milk,  cheese,  and  meat ;  some  wild  game  which 
is  snared  for  the  flesh  and  hides ;  and  a  limited 
amount  of  dates,  which  are  gathered  during  the 
Rains.  Domestic  poultry,  which  one  associates 
with  every  native  village  in  A^frica,  are  here  kept 
in  very  small  numbers,  as  there  is  little  grain  for 
them ;  and  it  is  often  difficult  to  secure  a  single 
bird  or  a  few  eggs. 

There  are  few  villages  in  Air  that  can  boast  of 
inhabitants  to-day,  and  only  at  three  of  those  is 
there  any  grain  grown,  viz.  at  Azzal,  Aouderas, 
and  Timia,  where  small  garden-plots  on  the 
river-bed  banks,  which  are  watered  daily  from 
wells,  are  cultivated  to  produce  a  small  quantity 
of  wheat  and  millet. 

Yet  grain  is  undoubtedly  the  chief  food  of  the 
natives  of  Air,  and,  therefore,  since  they  do  not 
grow  it,  as  much  grain  (millet,  guinea- corn,  and 
maize)  as  they  can  afford  has  yearly  to  be 
imported  into  Air  on  camel  caravans  and  donkey 
caravans,  which  travel  for  this  purpose  to  Tanout 
and  Zinder,  and  even  to  Kano,  397  miles  distant 
from  Agades. 

I  was,  unfortunately,  only  able  to  remain  a  few 
days    at    Agades    before     proceeding    into    the 


140  AGADES 

mountains,  and,  so  far  as  the  strange  old  town  is 
concerned,  I  will  not  attempt  to  describe  it  fully, 
since  I  have  not  had  sufficient  opportunity  to 
study  the  ancient  history  of  the  place — ^that  all- 
important  background  which  is  the  very  soul  of 
its  significance,  and  which  may  only  be  compre- 
hended after  long  examination,  aided  by  the 
wisdom  of  the  oldest  inhabitants  or  learned 
Senussi,   Marabout,   or  Mohammedan  priests. 

I  have  in  mind,  however,  two  notable  dwellings 
in  Agades  with  which  I  am  familiar.  The  first 
I  would  like  to  describe  is  the  Sultan's  Palace, 
the  most  notable  building  in  Agades  excepting 
the  imposing  Mohammedan  mosque,  and,  per- 
haps, of  greater  interest  now  than  hitherto,  since 
it  was  so  lately  the  home  of  the  traitor  sultan 
Tegama,  who  at  the  time  of  my  visit  lay  awaiting 
trial  on  the  charge  of  high  treason  within  the 
fort  scarce  a  mile  away.  (Tegama,  however, 
never  stood  trial,  for  he  committed  suicide 
about  a  month  later.) 

Through  a  deep  archway  in  a  thick  mud  wall 
you  enter  the  courtyard  of  the  Sultan's  Palace.) 
A  small  gloomy  entrance,  wherein  one  can  wel 
imagine  lurked  the  watchmen  of  the  Sultan  ii 
time  of  danger.  On  the  outside  of  this  entrance 
is  a  double-leaved,  cumbersome  door,  constructec 
with  palm  poles  laced  securely  together  witl 
thongs  of  goat-hide  — a  door  to  be  closed  at  nighl 
to  shut  out  the  dangers  of  the  desert.  Do  nol 
picture  a  courtyard  within  the  entrance  that  is 
paved  and  spotless  for  the  reception  of  the  foot- 
steps of  royalty  or  you  will  be  disappointed,  foi 
there  is  nothing  but  an  open  space  of  level  sand^ 


THE  SULTAN'S  PALACE  141 

with  small  mud  buildings  erected  in  such  position 
that  they  form  a  fairly  regular  square.  On  the 
east  is  the  palace  ;  on  the  south  the  stall-divided 
mosque  for  private  prayer  ;  on  the  west  an  open 
shelter,  presumably  for  the  reception  of  travellers 
waiting  audience  with  the  Sultan  or  his  advisers  ; 
and  on  the  north  the  wall  wherein  the  entrance. 
The  palace  is  deserted — forsaken  since  the  down- 
fall of  Tegama — and  there  is  now  no  pleasant 
scene  within  the  courtyard,  so  that  one  can 
but  imagine  those  better  days  when  camp-fires 
sparkled  here  at  eventide  surrounded  by  the  hum 
of  camp-fire  gossip,  and  groups  of  picturesquely 
clad  Tuaregs  and  reposing  camels  of  wayfarers 
arrived  with  news  or  food  from  distant  parts.  Or 
the  scene  by  day  :  the  courtyard  almost  empty 
(as  it  is  now),  since  the  fierce  heat  of  the  sun  had 
driven  the  people  to  seek  shelter  within  the  dark 
chambers  of  the  palace,  and  the  town,  after  the 
early  hours  of  coolness,  had  witnessed  the  direct- 
ing of  the  business  of  the  day. 

To  enter  the  palace  from  the  courtyard  you  turn 
to  the  left,  and  again  you  pass  within  a  deep 
dark  entrance.  You  are  then  in  a  gloomy  window- 
less  mud-built  vestibule  or  entrance  hall,  with 
large  fireplaces  recessed  at  either  end,  while 
the  room  is  crossed  diagonally,  to  a  door  in  the 
opposite  wall,  by  a  path  that  has  raised  margins. 
No  doubt  the  convenient  spaces  on  either  side  of 
the  path  were  loitering  places,  where  servants  of 
the  Sultan  gossiped,  the  while  they  observed  all 
who  entered  or  passed  out.  Proceeding,  one 
steps  from  the  vestibule  through  the  door  in  the 
opposite  wall,  and  is  again  outdoors  in  the  full 


142  AGADES 

daylight  (which  is  most  noticeable  after  the  dark- 
ness of  the  den-like  interior),  having  entered  a 
small  inner  courtyard  hemmed  in  by  dwellings  on 
all  sides  and  containing  a  confusing  number  of 
low  dark  doorways  and  ascending  stairways  to 
dwellings  above.  Directly  opposite  the  vesti- 
bule is  the  low  door  which  gives  entrance  to  the 
throne-room,  a  diminutive  chamber  with  arched 
ceiling  beams,  which  contains  the  throne  dais, 
fashioned,  like  all  structure,  with  the  clay-soil 
from  neighbouring  pits,  and  rounded  off  plainly, 
but  not  without  some  neatness  and  endeavour  at 
rude  design.  As  to  the  rest  of  the  chamber,  there 
are  a  few  small  niches  in  the  thick  walls,  and  some 
interesting  quaintly  primitive  scroll  ornament, 
while  on  the  right  of  the  throne  there  is  an  ex- 
posed mud-built  stairway  leading  up  to  a  second 
story,  wherein  are  three  low-ceilinged  rooms  lit 
by  small  openings  in  the  exterior  wall,  each  room 
a  tiny  gloomy  shut-in  space  more  like  hiding-den 
or  prison  than  chosen  human  dwelling.  The 
doors  from  the  inner  courtyard  lead  to  many 
other  such  apartments,  no  less  diminutive,  no 
less  gloomy,  and  now  but  the  home  of  swarms  of 
bats  and  one  or  two  large  brown  African  owls 
(Bubo  africanus  cinerasceus).  Throughout  one  finds 
the  same  congestion  of  space,  the  same  rude  adapt- 
ability to  the  bare  needs  of  shelter  of  primitive 
outdoor  people,  which  is  common  to  every  native 
dwelling  in  Hausaland  or  Air,  or,  indeed,  any- 
where in  out-of-the-way  places  in  Africa.  The 
entire  dwelling,  and  many  another  of  the  kind 
in  similar  country,  is  a  "  Palace "  only  in 
name  and  political  significance.    And  this  con- 


i 


vii;\\'  or  Ai.AiJi'.s. 


-Mo-nu 


MlMiMll 


1 


THROXE-ROOM    OF    THE    SULTAK    OF    AGADES. 


US] 


PRIMITIVE    DWELLINGS  143 

dition  of  primitiveness  and  humbleness  ought,  I 
think,  to  be  made  quite  clear,  for  I  have  read 
works  which,  in  my  view,  were  far  too  apt  to 
lead  one  astray  in  forming  an  overhigh  opinion  of 
the  royalty  and  magnificence  which  is  sometimes 
believed  to  surround  the  Emir  or  Sultan  or  Saraki 
of  a  native  community  and  their  dwellings.  True, 
such  men  are  the  kings  and  princes  of  the  land, 
and  have  a  certain  exalted  standing ;  but  there  is  a 
very  wide  difference  between  those  chiefs  of  tribes 
or  districts  (who  are  sometimes  not  much  more 
than  crafty  rascals,  and  seldom  to  any  notable 
degree  better  in  refinement  than  their  subjects) 
and  the  kings  of  civilised  lands.  And  the  great 
difference  in  caste  between  primitive  King  and 
cultured  King  is  in  no  way  more  clearly  reflected 
than  through  the  medium  of  their  dwellings  and 
environments  :  in  the  one  case  a  beautiful  palace, 
rich  in  architecture,  refined,  and  royally  appointed 
in  every  inner  detail ;  in  the  other  nothing  more 
important  than  a  group  of  small  bare  mud-built 
dwellings,  neither  tastefully  appointed  nor  regal 
in  any  degree,  and  entirely  wrapped  in  an  atmo- 
sphere of  humbleness,  even  poverty,  such  as  sur- 
rounds all  people  of  primitive  environment  and 
primitive  race. 

The  position  of  the  Sultan  of  Agades  is  one  of 
greatness  in  the  land,  though  of  a  type  of  local 
importance  which  has  decided  limitations,  and 
one  might  be  forgiven,  if,  carried  away  by  the 
weight  of  rank  and  reputation,  he  should  expect 
to  find  about  the  Sultan's  abode  something  in 
keeping  with  the  name  of  a  sovereign.  But  that  is 
I  not  so,  for  we  find  the  throne-room  a  small  dark 


144  AGADES 

space,  within  earthen  walls,  no  larger  than  a 
cottage  bedroom,  and  less  ornamented;  and  his 
private  apartments  for  his  own  use,  and  the  use 
of  his  retinue,  no  larger,  no  more  attractively  or 
extravagantly  constructed,  than  tiny  cellars  or 
pen-like  outhouses. 

So  that  the  Sultan's  Palace  at  Agades,  like 
many  others  in  Africa,  is  a  humble  place  indeed, 
its  virtue  not  at  all  in  regal  magnificence,  but  in 
historic  value,  and  in  the  novelty  and  quaintness 
of  primitive  native  architecture  of  a  character  of 
great  simplicity  and  antiquity  as  if  it  has  remained 
unchanged  through  time  by  any  process  of 
civilisation. 

The  second  dwelling  I  will  describe  is  not  in  the 
old  town  of  Agades,  nor  is  it  of  native  design.  I 
write  of  the  European  mess-room  within  the  Fort, 
part  of  a  dwelling  of  European  conception,  builtj 
with  some  knowledge  of  design,  and  imposing  and 
spacious  in  comparison  with  the  diminutive  build- 
ings of  the  native  town,  but,  nevertheless,  a  dwell- 
ing rude  enough  in  construction,  since,  by  nature 
of  its  wilderness  environment,  it  is,  in  essentials, 
impossible  to  avoid  the  limitations  imposed  by 
primitive  labour  and  primitive  material. 

I  will  give  the  description,  such  as  it  is,  inform-  j 
ally  from  my  diary,  since  it  embraces  a  little  of 
the  life,  as  well  as  the  architecture,  common  to  the 
white  man  at  the  Fort  of  Agades  : 

"  We  had  forgathered  for  breakfast,  that  cus- 
tomary eleven  o'clock  meal  of  the  French  which 
is  both  breakfast  and  lunch  in  one,  at  that 
time  of  day  when  it  is  an  ordeal  merely  to  cross 
the  barrack  square,  so  white  and  glaring  the  sand, 


AN  OFFICERS/  HOME  145 

so  great  the  fierceness  of  the  sun.  Therefore,  one 
by  one,  the  labours  of  the  morning  over,  we 
stepped  into  the  shade  and  coolness  of  the  thick 
walled  room  with  a  real  thankfulness;  especially 
thankful,  perhaps,  those  who  bear  the  mark  of 
chronic  fatigue,  which  an  unnatural  climate  is  so 
apt  to  impose,  and  which  is  apparent  upon  the 
features  of  most  of  the  group.  Around  small 
tables  that  were  pushed  together  to  make  up  one 
large  one  we  sat  down  to  the  meal,  the  company 
being  composed  of  five  French  officers  and  myself, 
while  our  dusky  native  servants  were  in  attend- 
ance, and  a  small  child  stood  to  one  side  and 
pulled  the  cord  that  swung  a  punka  which  was 
suspended  over  the  table. 

*'  We  sat  long  over  the  repast,  discussing  many 
things  African,  and  it  was  not  until  some  time  after 
the  meal  was  over  that  conversation  lagged  at  my 
end  of  the  table  and  gave  me  an  opportunity  to 
observe  my  surroundings.  The  room  is  not  very 
large,  and  there  is  just  space  enough  to  allow  the 
attendants  to  pass  comfortably  around  the  table. 
Trimless,  square-cut  liberal  openings  serve  as 
doors  and  windows,  while  over  those  are  dropped 
blinds  of  light  lattice,  which  prevent  the  entrance 
of  sun  and  sand-dust,  yet  admit  a  free  current  of 
air.  The  mud  walls  are  thick  and  straightly 
built,  smoothed  down  with  a  coating  of  mud 
plaster,  and  whitewashed  with  a  preparation  of 
chalk  and  cement,  obtained  out  of  the  ground  in 
the  neighbourhood.  (Dr.  Barth  in  his  works  makes 
reference  to  a  house  nicely  whitewashed  in 
the  old  to^vn  of  Agades,  but  he  did  not  mention 
the  interesting  fact  that  the  "  whitewash  "  is 


146  AGADES 

native  to  Agades.)  The  walls  are  bare  of  orna- 
ment except  for  cupboards,  set  back  against  them, 
that  are  made  from  an  assortment  of  packing- 
cases  and  still  retain  their  true  character,  even  to 
the  glaring  names  of  merchant  and  merchandise 
in  their  rude  transformation  and  paintlessness. 
But  what  better  can  be  done  where  sawn  boarding 
is  unknown  ?  The  ceiling  of  the  room  is  lofty, 
and  constructed  with  closely  set  undressed  fibrous 
dum  palm  timbers,  the  only  wood  in  the  country 
that  the  terrible  white  ant  will  not  destroy. 
Upon  the  walls,  in  the  darkest  places,  there  are  a 
number  of  wart-like  lumps  which  are  the  plaster- 
built  cell-nests  of  black-and-yellow  hornets  that 
pass  constantly  in  and  out  of  the  room.  Also 
there  are  one  or  two  pairs  of  tiny  waxbills  at  free- 
dom in  the  room,  cheeping  and  flitting  from  floor 
to  window-ledge,  or  vanishing  outdoors.  They 
are  always  in  pairs,  inseparable  as  love-birds, 
the  male  crimson  in  colour  and  his  mate  mouse- 
brown.  I  must  call  them  Estrilda  senegala 
bruuneiceps^  so  that  there  may  be  no  error  on 
account  of  their  scientific  identity,  but  to 
ordinary  folk,  such  as  you  and  me,  I  would  de- 
scribe them  as  '  Crimson  Waxbill '  or  '  House 
WaxbilL' 

"  I  think  I  have  described  all,  when  eyes  roam 
nearer  hand  and  dwell  on  the  few  articles  on  the 
table,  and  I  see  that  even  there  we  do  not  escape 
the  primitive  :  the  pepper  is  in  a  cigarette  tin 
which  still  bears  the  yellow  label  of  the  manu- 
facturer ;  the  salt  is  in  another  distinguished  by  a 
green  label ;  while  all  the  drinking-glasses  are 
dark-coloured  and  thick  and  ragged-rimmed,  and 


RUDE  NECESSITY  147 

are  nothing  more  than  old  wine  bottles  cut  down 
about  their  centre." 

And  from  all  this  we  may  perhaps  justly  con- 
clude that  the  Sultan's  Palace  is  about  the  best 
the  natives  can  do  in  the  way  of  dwelling-building 
at  Agades,  and  the  mess-room  at  the  Fort  a  fair 
sample  of  the  humble  extent  that  civilised  people 
can  improve  upon  it  when  thrown  entirely  on  the 
scant  resources  of  a  wilderness. 


CHAPTER  X 

AIR  :    NORTH   TO   BAGUEZAN   MOUNTAINS   AND 
HUNTING   BARBARY   SHEEP 

On  26th  April  I  left  Agades  with  the  intention  of 
travelling  north  into  the  Air  mountains,  and  to 
ultimately  pitch  a  base  camp  on  Baguezan. 

Besides  four  transport  camels,  the  little  band 
which  set  out  was  made  up  of  two  goumiers,  by 
name  Saidi  and  Atagoom,  the  chief  of  Baguezan, 
and  two  followers  and  myself;  six  fully  armed 
camel-mounted  men,  not  including  my  cook-boy, 
John,  who  was  also  in  the  company.  The  Chief  of 
Baguezan  had  been  called  into  Agades  so  that,  if 
he  was  friendly  disposed,  he  could  conduct  me  to 
his  country.  He  was  the  new  Chief  Minerou  who 
had  succeeded  Yofa,  who  was  foully  killed  a  few 
months  before  by  the  dagger-thrust  of  a  skulking 
foe  when  guarding  his  camels  against  an  attack 
from  prowling  robbers. 

At  Agades,  before  departure,  I  had  stored  every 
article  I  could  do  without,  on  account  of  the 
difficulties  of  travel  ahead,  and  took  with  me 
supplies  of  food  and  ammunition  barely  suffi- 
cient to  last  for  a  period  of  two  or  three 
months. 

Our  little  band  left  Agades  at  various  times  in 

148 


WE  START  NORTH  OF  AGADES        149 

the  afternoon  to  camp  at  the  tent-like  inhabited 
Tuareg  village  of  Azzal,  which  was  only  about 
five  miles  N.E.  of  our  starting-point,  and  was  to 
be  the  rendezvous  of  our  organised  departure  on 
the  morrow. 

27th  April, — ^Left  Azzal  before  dawn.  Yester- 
day we  had  skirted  the  foothills  in  travelling  up 
the  broad  dry  river-bed  of  the  shallow  Azzal 
Valley,  but  to-day  we  departed  from  the  edge  of 
the  level  desert,  and  entered  low  hill  country  of 
strange  appearance,  composed  of  rock  and  boulder 
and  gravel,  bare  of  any  vegetation,  and  therefore 
dreadfully  melancholy  and  barren.  View  after 
view  of  brown  coloured  hills  unfolded  before  us 
as  we  passed  onward  over  gravel-strewn  ground, 
or  picked  our  way  through  rocky  outcrops,  or 
descended  to  sandy  river-bed  ;  while  always  one 
could  follow  out  the  thin  line  of  the  river  banks  or 
hollows  which  caught  moisture  in  the  rains,  for 
they  contained  a  bright  green  growth  of  dum 
palm  and  "  abisgee "  *  bush,  which  was  very 
striking  and  conspicuous  among  the  sombre 
hills. 

Without  any  doubt  it  is  beyond  Azzal  that  the 
traveller  enters  the  true  brown-grey  rock  country 
of  Air :  the  low  country,  which  contains  many 
isolated  cone-shaped  hills  or  kopjes,  that  leads 
one,  in  time,  to  the  great  central  mountains.  Bare 
the  land  is  of  generous  elements  of  beauty,  and 
almost  equally  bare  of  living  thing.     In  many 

* "  Abisgee,"  Hausa  name ;  an  evergreen,  willow-like  bush, 
which  has  a  pungent  skiuik  odour.  It  bears  large  clusters  of 
currant-like  fruit  in  June  and  July.  This  bush  was  foimd  only 
in  Air,  and  it  may  be  Boscia  aalicifolia,  Oliver  (Capparidacese). 


160  AIR 

places  the  only  vegetation  in  a  large  area  lies  in 
the  thin  rift  of  some  infant  rivulet — a  meandering 
line  of  sand  which  seeks  a  way  among  the  grey 
pebbles  and  rocks,  wherein  a  few  dry  tufts  of 
grass,  and,  perhaps,  a  stunted  dwarf  acacia,  a 
grasshopper  or  two,  and,  if  you  are  in  luck,  a  small 
mouse-like,  sand-coloured  lark  crouching  on  the 
ground  may  be  seen,  for  scarcely  any  moving 
living  thing  misses  the  eye  in  a  land  that  is 
well-nigh  motionless. 

We  camped  at  Solom  Solom  about  noon,  and 
obtained  some  water  from  a  well  which  is  on  the 
banks  of  a  river  there,  and  about  which  one  or 
two  Tuaregs  are  camped.  The  Tuaregs  with  me 
pronounce  this  name  Selim  Selim.  It  is  about 
18  miles  due  north  of  Azzal,  and  has  altitude  of 
2,100  ft.     (Agades  is  1,710  ft.) 

28th  April. — ^Left  Solom  Solom  an  hour  before 
daybreak  ;  reached  Tchefira  about  noon,  after 
stopping  to  replenish  our  water-skins  in  the  river- 
bed known  to  the  natives  as  Arrajubjub.  Water 
obtained  by  digging  down  in  the  sand  of  the  river- 
bed close  under  some  large  rocks  on  the  east  bank 
of  the  stream. 

There  is  a  height  of  land  at  Arrajubjub  where 
the  river  falls  south  to  Agades  and  north  toward 
Baguezan.  The  river  valley,  which  we  chiefly 
followed  to-day,  and  which  turns  almost  due  east 
not  long  after  leaving  Solom  Solom,  is  named  in 
sections,  as  are  most  rivers  in  the  country  :  thus 
it  is  the  Solom  Solom  (which  becomes  the  Azzal 
river  further  south)  at  the  beginning  of  to-day's 
journey,  then  Dabaga,  then  Injerwdan,  then 
Arrajubjub,  and,  finally,  Tchefira.  The  river  banks 


MY    CARAVAN    UX    THE    AKRAJUBJUB    RIVER. 


,■'•••  -> 


TYPICAL    AIR    LANDSCAPE. 


UO] 


NATURE  OF  FOOTHILLS  151 

continue  to  have  the  green  fringe  of  vegetation  : 
dum  palms,  Hausa  Kaha ;  small  skunk-smelling 
tree,  Hausa  Ahisgee ;  small  dwarf  acacia,  growing 
3  ft.  to  4  ft.  high,  Hausa  Giga ;  and  a  fairly  large 
acacia,  say,  20  ft.  high,  Hausa  Zandidi. 

Some  picturesque  hill  country  was  passed 
through,  though  the  hills  remain  bare  of  vegeta- 
tion. The  large  mountain  range  of  Aouderas  was 
sighted  faintly  in  the  north  about  11  a.m., 
distant  a  little  more  than  20  miles. 

A  number  of  Dorcas  Gazelles  were  seen  at 
Tchefira  and  a  single  Dama  Gazelle. 

29th  April. — ^To-day  our  direction  of  travel 
changed  to  about  due  N.E.,  while  we  kept  chiefly 
in  touch  with  the  Araouat  River,  sometimes 
travelling  up  its  heavy  sandy  bed,  sometimes 
branching  off  to  make  a  short  cut  overland  when 
the  river  took  a  large  circuitous  bend.  The  hills 
we  passed  to-day  in  the  stony  uneven  plains  were 
mostly  conical  and  of  blackish  lava  rock  or  red- 
dish dust.  About  6  miles  from  Tchefira  there  is  a 
prominent  hill  which  the  Tuaregs  call  Nafurifanya, 
and  below  this  hill,  on  the  west  side,  we  found  a 
single  native  working  on  a  section  of  ground  that 
contained  a  salt  deposit,  which  mineral  he  collected 
by  digging  one  foot  to  three  feet  below  the  sand 
surface.  At  the  end  of  our  journey,  after  travel- 
ling a  considerable  distance  over  gravel- covered 
country,  we  intersected  a  narrow  river-bed, 
named  Arra  (not  on  map),  where  we  camped 
for  the  day,  in  view  of  Baguezan,  lying  north, 
and  Aouderas,  north-west :  both  very  large 
mountains,  of  which  Aouderas  appears  the  lesser 
in  extent  but  the  greater  in  height.    Many  of 


152  AIR 

the  lower  hills  between  Baguezan  and  Aouderas 
are  of  striking  shapes  ;  two  noteworthy  with 
tower-like  peaks,  and  the  others  strangely  cone- 
shaped. 

Altitude  at  camp,  3,000  ft. 

30th  April. — ^Travelled  onward  in  the  early 
morning,  and  camped  two  to  three  miles  north- 
west of  Teouar  (a  deserted  village  of  stone-built 
huts),  close  in  under  Baguezan  foothills,  at  a  place 
selected  by  Minerou  as  a  suitable  camping- ground 
from  which  to  hunt  among  the  hills  for  mountain 
sheep.  We  were  still  in  the  district  known  to  the 
natives  as  Arra,  so  named  apparently  on  account 
of  the  river  course  that  has  its  source  in  the 
mountain  of  that  name,  which  is  the  most 
northern  of  a  group  of  three  prominent  eleva- 
tions that  lie  immediately  to  the  west  of  this 
camp,  named  respectively,  from  south  to  north, 
Tchebishrie,  Aouderas,  and  Arra. 

When  camp  was  selected,  brackish  water  was 
obtained  from  the  Arra  river  by  digging  in  the 
sandy  bottom,  but  there  was  no  rich  vegetation 
on  the  banks. 

Thus  far,  north  of  Agades,  good  water  had 
been  found  at  Azzal  and  Solom  Solom  in  wells, 
and  at  Arrajubjub  by  excavation.  No  water 
was  drawn  at  Tchefira,  except  for  the  camels, 
as  it  was  brine-tasted  and  not  good,  and  there 
was  no  water  at  our  i&rst  camp  on  the  Arra  river 
on  29th  April. 

Altitude  at  camp,  3,300  ft. 

About  3  p.m.  I  set  out  with  Minerou  to  tramp 
to  the  mountains  to  search  for  sheep,  and  had  my 
first  experience  of  the  nature  of  the  hunting  that 


SOUTH  OF  BAGUEZAN  153 

lay  before  me  in  looking  for  those  animals.  The 
ruggedness  of  the  country  was  astonishing.  To 
begin  with,  the  apparently  flat  stony  land  that  lay 
between  camp  and  the  hills  was,  on  closer  acquaint- 
ance, found  to  be  thickly  seared  with  deep  ravines, 
and  although  Minerou,  who  knew  the  country  like 
a  book,  led  me  by  the  easiest  route,  our  path  was 
constantly  barred  by  those  strange  deep  channels, 
down  which  we  scrambled,  over  rocks  and  stones, 
to  afterwards  ascend  with  no  little  effort  to  the 
opposite  side.  The  nearer  we  drew  to  the  hills, 
the  rougher  became  the  nature  of  the  country,  and 
our  outward  journey  culminated  at  the  base  of 
Arra  in  one  long  scramble  among  huge  boulders 
and  loose  stones,  where  foothold  had  to  be  picked 
out  at  each  step  as  we  hurried  on,  for  Minerou, 
born  mountaineer  and  barefooted  (for  he  had  re- 
moved his  sandals  the  better  to  grip  foothold  as  he 
stepped  or  jumped  from  rock  to  rock),  was  cover- 
ing the  ground  at  a  great  pace.  We  had  planned, 
in  setting  out,  that  we  would  not  have  sufficient 
daylight  to  climb  the  mountain,  and  would  skirt 
a  part  of  the  base  in  the  hope  that  at  dusk  we 
might  chance  upon  sheep  descending  from  the 
mountain  tops  (where  they  remain  all  day)  to 
feed  on  the  sparse  vegetation  in  the  ravines. 
However,  our  search  went  unrewarded,  although 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  actually  seeing  one  animal 
perched  away  up  on  the  mountain-side  at  a  great 
height. 

During  the  outing  I  saw  some  birds  of  great 

interest,  and  I  particularly  made  note  of  three 

species  which  I  had  not  observed  further  south, 

and  which,  later,  proved  to  be  the  Rock  Pigeon 

12 


154  AIR 

(Columba  livia  targia),  the  beautiful  Sandgrouse 
(Pterocles  lichtensteinii  tar  gins),  and  a  small 
sombre  wheatear-like  bird  (Ceromela  melanura 
airensis)  of  blackish-brown  colour  of  striking 
similarity  to  the  rocks  and  stones  on  which 
they  perch. 

1st  May. — Away  before  daylight  to  hunt  in 
earnest  for  wild  sheep.  To-day  we  did  not  go 
to  the  mountains  lying  N.W.,  but  made  for  some 
lower  more  isolated  hills  in  the  north,  the  principal 
one  of  which  the  Tuaregs  call  Tuckazanza.  The 
chief  of  Baguezan  and  one  of  his  men  accompanied 
me.  Travelling  was  as  hard  as  that  experienced 
yesterday,  over  rough  mountain  sides  and  valleys 
of  rocks  and  boulders  and  stones,  while  in  some 
cases  whole  hills  were  composed  of  huge  boulders, 
individually  many  tons  in  weight,  which  could 
only  be  negotiated  by  reckless  bounding  and 
leaping  and  scrambling,  while  deep  ugly  chasms 
held  open  mouth  to  receive  you  should  you  slip. 
I  have  hunted  in  many  strange  places,  but  never 
in  such  wild  mountainous  country  as  this ;  I  feel  I 
cannot  compare  it  with  anything  at  home  :  the 
nearest  to  it  in  ruggedness  that  I  know  is  where 
one  may  hunt  for  sea  otters  along  the  cliff- 
shores  of  the  storm-torn  coasts  of  the  Orkney 
Islands. 

About  7.30  a.m.,  having  seen  no  sheep,  we  held 
a  consultation,  when  Minerou  decided  that  he 
would  climb  right  over  the  summit  of  Tucka- 
zanza, while  his  follower  and  myself  were 
directed  to  go  further  round  the  base  and  climb 
over  a  lower  spur,  and  we  were  eventually  to 
meet  again  on  the  other  side.     This  arranged, 


HUNTING  BARBARY  SHEEP  155 

we  started  off  on  our  separate  ways.  In  due 
time  I,  along  with  Minerou's  follower,  had 
climbed  to  the  summit  of  the  ridge,  always 
scanning  every  fresh  hollow  or  rise  as  they  ap- 
peared in  view  in  hope  of  sighting  game ;  but 
thus  far  without  any  luck. 

We  had  begun  the  descent  down  the  other  side, 
when  the  native  beside  me  suddenly  gripped  my 
arm  and  pointed  excitedly  to  the  right,  where, 
after  a  few  moments  of  perplexity  in  endeavour- 
ing to  locate  that  which  the  Tuareg  had  seen,  my 
eyes  were  arrested  by  the  slight  movement  of  a 
pair  of  heavy  curved  horns.  Not  a  hair  of  the 
animal  was  in  sight,  but  the  head  undoubtedly 
belonged  to  a  sheep  standing  not  more  than  five 
hundred  yards  away  in  a  slight  dip  in  the  moun- 
tain side.  No  time  was  to  be  lost :  the  horns  were 
facing  our  way,  and  perhaps,  for  all  we  could  tell, 
the  wary  animal  had  heard  us  and  was  looking 
upward,  listening.  I  signed  to  the  native  to  lead 
on,  judging  he  would  choose  the  easiest  way 
through  the  huge  boulders  that  we  were  among 
(I  found  in  later  experience  that  mountain  sheep 
always  frequent  the  very  roughest  places,  where 
they  the  more  readily  find  the  coolest  and  darkest 
shelter  from  the  heat  and  sunlight  in  the  caves 
and  chasms  which  gigantic  boulders  and  rocks  so 
readily  form),  and,  crouching  and  scrambling  and 
leaping,  we  set  off  on  the  stalk  at  a  perilous  speed 
— perilous  at  least  to  me,  who  could  not  boast 
the  barefooted  nimbleness  of  my  mountaineer 
companion. 

It  was  surely  the  "  daftest "  and  the  least 
cunning    stalk    I    have    ever    made,    excepting 


156  AIR 

perhaps  the  "  buck-fever  "  pranks  of  my  earliest 
experiences  of  hunting.  The  native  had  simply- 
grasped  the  idea  that  the  animals  looked  like 
shifting  when  we  sighted  them,  for  he  had 
seen  two,  and  his  one  purpose  was  to  get  there 
before  they  could  possibly  be  gone — ^and  I  had  but 
to  follow  ;  for  moments  were  precious,  and  what 
use  to  hesitate  and  stop  to  explain  that  I  should 
advance  slowly  so  that  my  footwear  would  make 
no  scraping  noise  on  the  rocks,  and  slowly,  also,  so 
that  I  should  have  some  breath  and  life  in  my 
body  when  the  moment  came  to  shoot.  How  I 
managed  to  cover  the  distance  in  our  mad  haste 
without  mishap  I  do  not  to  this  day  know, 
except  that  for  the  moment  I  had  no  time  to 
think  of  fear,  which  certainly  helped  me  on  over 
ugly  chasms  that  yawned  across  my  path,  en- 
tailing leaps  that  seemed  beyond  my  ability, 
yet,  somehow,  were  miraculously  crossed  and 
left  behind. 

We  reached  the  place  where  the  animal  had 
stood,  and,  on  peering  over  the  slight  rise  which 
had  screened  us,  at  once  saw  two  sheep  clambering 
away  over  the  rocks.  I  fired  at  once  at  the  largest 
one  and  brought  him  down,  but  twice  missed  the 
second  one  as  he  headed  away  upwards,  some- 
times in  view,  more  often  hidden  among  the 
rocks. 

However,  as  luck  had  it,  we  learned  a  little  later, 
when  Minerou  joined  us,  that  this  second  animal 
had  run  into  him  on  the  summit,  and  he  had  shot 
it,  so  that  both  animals  were  bagged. 

Consultation  decided  that  the  follower  and  I 
should  go  back  to  camp  for  a  camel  to  fetch  in  the 


SHEEP  KILLED  157 

game,  while  Minerou  would  return  to  his  kill  on 
the  summit  and  safeguard  it  against  jackals  and 
crows  (the  latter  were  already  croaking  and 
cawing  on  the  rocks  about  us,  having  detected  the 
kills  from  afar  with  their  extraordinary  eyesight), 
as  we  had  already  secured  ours,  after  disembowel- 
ling it,  by  moving  it  into  a  hollow  between  two 
rocks,  and  heaping  upon  it  big  stones  so  that 
nothing  could  reach  the  carcass. 

On  the  way  back  to  camp  there  occurred  a 
strange  incident  that  proved  highly  exciting  for  a 
moment,  until  the  voices  of  friends  banished  the 
possibility  of  human  bloodshed ;  an  incident 
which  demonstrated  to  me  at  an  early  stage  how 
real  is  bandit  warfare  in  those  hills.  This  is  what 
happened.  We  were  about  to  cross  a  deep  ravine, 
when  we  suddenly  espied  two  men  travelling 
toward  us  on  foot,  not  on  the  open  ground  of  the 
level  land  above,  but  perched  up  on  the  cliff  face 
of  the  sunken  ravine  and  advancing  amongst  the 
rocks,  as  if  they  had  some  purpose  in  remaining 
concealed.  Instantly  the  native  with  me 
crouched  behind  cover  and  looked  to  the  full 
charging  of  his  rifle,  quite  apparently  apprehend- 
ing danger.  In  a  few  moments  the  men  advanced 
around  a  spur  and  disappeared  into  a  recess  in  the 
twisting  ravine.  Whenever  they  were  out  of  sight 
my  follower  bounded  forward,  agile  as  a  goat, 
among  the  huge  rocks,  to  a  prominence  where  he 
might  carefully  look  over  and  down  upon  the  ap- 
proaching men  and  observe  them  more  closely 
from  a  point  of  advantage,  while  I  lay  with  my 
rifle  ready  and  waited.  But  the  native  did  not 
beckon  me  forward,  or  return  himself,  and  soon 


158  AIR 

I  heard  voices  ring  out,  and  knew  we  were  with 
friends  and  not  enemies,  and  a  few  moments 
proved  them  to  be  one  of  our  own  party,  who 
had  been  sent  away  the  night  before  by  the 
Chief  to  scout  through  the  neighbourhood  as  a 
precaution  against  robbers,  and  with  him  was 
a  native  from  Baguezan  whom  he  had  chanced 
to  meet. 

The  alarm  had  turned  out  to  be  false.  Never- 
theless, I  did  not  readily  forget  my  native's  in- 
stant expectation  of  a  fight  with  enemies,  and 
the  familiar  manner  in  which  he  accepted  the 
situation.  His  were  the  actions  of  one  who  lived 
from  day  to  day  in  the  midst  of  dangers,  and  had 
been  bred  and  born  to  the  habit  of  defence  against 
foes  that  ever  lurked  near. 

Many  incidents  of  this  character  I  experienced 
later  on,  and  had  soon  learned  that  the  alarming 
rumours  relating  to  robbers  which  were  prevalent 
farther  south  were  all  too  true,  and  that  the 
shadows  of  lurking  foes  were  foremost  in  the 
thoughts  of  every  Tuareg  in  Air,  where  robbers 
imposed  a  terrifying  oppression. 

On  reaching  camp,  a  camel  was  despatched  to 
find  Minerou  in  the  hills  and  bring  in  the  sheep, 
which  in  due  course  arrived  in  camp  to  be  skinned 
and  used  as  food,  as  neither  beast  was  perfect 
enough  to  serve  as  a  museum  specimen.  The 
larger  of  the  two  had  a  fine  head,  but  the  body 
hair  was  thin  and  patchy,  and  altogether  out  of 
condition. 

A  peculiar  change  in  the  hot  cloudless  weather 
had  occurred  during  the  past  two  days.  Yester- 
day, in  the  afternoon,  there  was  high  wind  and 


A  STRANGE  INCIDENT  159 

some  rain  showers,  while  to-day,  at  the  same  hour, 
the  sky  was  overclouded,  and  distant  thunder 
rumbled,  and  there  was  again  very  high  wind 
which  wrecked  my  tarpaulin  shade-shelter  and 
rudely  interrupted  the  bird-skinning  on  which  I 
was  employed  at  the  time.  Possibly  Rains  are 
now  falling  in  Nigeria,  where,  I  am  told  by  the 
natives,  they  are  about  due.  But  Rains  are  not 
due  in  Air  until  July  or  August,  if  local  informa- 
tion is  to  be  trusted. 

2nd  May. — ^Away  again  at  peep  of  daylight,  but 
to-day  had  no  luck.  The  Chief  and  I  followed 
the  trail  of  a  very  large  animal  where  it  had  been 
this  morning  feeding  along  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tain named  Ebodina,  and  when  we  had  traced  it 
over  rocks  and  sand-pools  in  the  ravines  to  where 
it  had  taken  to  the  heights,  we  too  started  to 
ascend  in  hope  of  finding  its  resting-place  in  some 
cave  above.  And  upward  we  laboured  during  the 
remainder  of  the  morning,  the  sure-footed  Chief 
sound  of  lung  and  never  daunted,  and  I,  bound  to 
follow  over  the  wildest  mountain  face  imaginable, 
composed,  like  the  hills  we  had  hunted  yesterday, 
chiefly  of  pile  upon  pile  of  huge  boulders,  with 
deep  dark  chasms  between.  Into  the  deepest 
of  those  recesses  the  Chief  would  sometimes 
pause  to  throw  a  pebble  in  the  hope  that  it  might 
send  the  sheep  from  its  place  of  hiding  in  its  noisy 
course  as  it  bounded  and  trickled  down  into  the 
gloomy  well-like  depth.  But  all  to  no  avail, 
and  we  returned  to  camp  empty-handed. 

On  this  day  I  found  the  relics  of  a  tragedy 
among  the  boulders  near  the  foot  of  Ebodina. 
They  were  the  rags  of  clothing  and  a  few  minute 


160  AIR 

pieces  of  personal  belongings,  and  a  riddled  goat- 
skin water-bag  belonging  to  some  native  who  had 
died  there  alone,  either  through  falling  from  the 
rocks  or  from  want  of  water  or  food.  No  weather- 
bleached  bones  lay  beside  those  pitiful  remnants, 
and  without  doubt  jackals  had  long  ago  seen  to 
their  removal. 

Srd  May. — Similar  to  the  previous  days  here, 
the  weather  dulled  down  in  the  afternoon,  and  we 
had  high  wind  and  thunder  and  a  little  rain,  the 
wind  being  a  great  hindrance  to  skinning  in  my 
temporary  quarters,  for  I  have  not  built  a  grass- 
hut  workshop  here,  as  the  ground  is  bad  to 
excavate  for  post  sockets — ^rocks  and  gravel — 
and  wood  and  grass  is  very  scarce. 

No  hunting  except  for  small  specimens,  and  none 
of  the  men  left  camp,  save  to  keep  watch  over 
the  camels,  who  have  constantly  a  guard  in 
case  robbers  should  discover  them. 

The  Chief  of  Baguezan  is  impatient  to  move  on 
to  the  security  of  his  mountain  home,  one  long 
day's  journey  distant,  but  I  ask  him  to  have 
patience  for  a  little,  for  here  we  are  on  low  ground, 
and  can  hunt  for  bird  and  beast  and  butterfly 
which  I  may  not  find  on  the  mountain-top  of 
Baguezan. 

4!th  May. — ^Dawn  found  Minerou  and  myself 
again  among  the  deep  ravines  and  rugged  moun- 
tains in  quest  of  sheep.  Four  animals  were  seen 
late  in  morning  far  up  the  mountain  side  of 
Aouderas,  but  we  were  unable  to  get  near  them. 
Signs  of  sheep  are  plentiful  enough,  but,  so  far  as 
I  can  judge  at  present,  they  are  very  wary  and 
wild  and  secretive  in  their  movements,  resting 


WIND  AND   RAIN  161 

and  hiding  in  the  dark  mountain  caves  by  day, 
and  coming  out  to  feed  in  late  evening  and  through 
the  night. 

Yesterday  evening  and  to-day  Rains  have  fallen 
quite  heavily,  and  the  hitherto  dry  river-bed  at 
camp  is  to-day  a  shallow  stream  of  water,  which 
is  a  sight  to  gladden  men's  hearts  in  this  land  of 
terrible  drought.  The  water  in  the  river  is  very 
reddish  on  account  of  the  soil  of  that  colour  which 
has  been  washed  down  from  the  ravine  sides  and 
mountain  sides.  Streams  of  water  are  also 
apparent  to-day  in  ravines  on  the  slopes  of 
Baguezan  Mountains,  so  that  precious  rain  has 
fallen  there  also,  and  the  Chief  is  now  more  anxious 
than  ever  to  get  back  to  his  home. 

I  discussed  the  boundaries  of  Air  with  the  Chief 
of  Baguezan  to-day.  He  states  that  Aderbis- 
sinat  is  within  the  boundary  of  Air,  and  that  east 
and  west  their  country  terminates  at  the  edge  of 
the  desert.  He  declares  he  knows  nothing  of  the 
limits  of  Air  to  the  north,  and  that  his  people  never 
go  there.  "  It  is  bad  country,  they  are  afraid  to 
go,"  he  said  ;  while  at  the  same  time  he  informed 
me  that  none  of  his  people  would  accompany  me 
to  Assode  or  Iferouan  when  I  declared  my  inten- 
tion to  visit  those  places.  Moreover,  he  warned 
me  solemnly  that  I  would  be  very  rash  if  I 
did  not  give  up  my  intention  of  going  farther 
into  the  country — a  view  expressed  by  every 
Tuareg  native  of  Air  with  whom  I  discussed  the 
subject  previous  to  setting  out  north.  From 
which  it  may  be  gathered  that  northern  Air  is 
indeed  a  place  of  evil  repute. 

To-day  I  trapped  a  beautiful  silver-grey  fox  of 


162  AIR 

a  kind  I  had  not  seen  before,  which,  I  fancy,  is 
peculiar  to  mountain  country  and  not  to  be  found 
in  the  desert.  (Scientific  examination  has  since 
proved  it  to  be  a  new  sub-species  :  Vulpes  riippelli 
ccesia.) 

5th  May. — ^Travelled  far  this  day  over  most 
rugged  country,  but  once  again  did  not  succeed 
in  bagging  sheep. 

On  returning  to  camp  in  the  afternoon,  bluster- 
ing wind-squalls  again  made  the  skinning  of  small 
specimens  almost  impossible,  and  I  suddenly 
made  up  my  mind  to  pack  up  and  go  on  to  Bague- 
zan,  prompted  partly  by  the  unsatisfactory  con- 
ditions at  camp  and  partly  by  the  wishes  of  the 
Chief  and  his  men,  who  were  impatient  to  reach 
their  homes. 

Thus  closed  the  first  few  days  of  hunting  in  the 
Air  mountains  without  any  great  measure  of 
success.  But  I  had  thoroughly  enjoyed  the  search 
for  sheep  amongst  the  wild  grandeur  of  strange 
mountains  and  had  found  a  type  of  hard  hunting 
which,  I  fancy,  would  rejoice  the  heart  of  any 
sportsman.  Moreover,  in  the  Chief  of  Baguezan 
I  had  found  a  splendid  hunter,  full  of  shrewd 
knowledge  of  the  habits  of  the  animals  of  his 
country,  a  born  mountaineer,  active  as  a  cat 
among  the  rocks,  familiar  with  every  nook  and 
cranny  in  the  hills,  and  tireless  in  his  quest 
for  game. 

At  a  later  date  I  was  very  successful  in  similar 
hunting,  and  secured  fine  representative  speci- 
mens of  the  Barbary  sheep  of  Air,  which  the  Hausa 
natives  name  Ragondoutchie  (or  Ragonduchi)  and 
the  Tuaregs  Afitell,  and  which  has  proved  to  be 


A  BORN  MOUNTAINEER  168 

a  new  sub-species  which  Lord  Rothschild  has 
named  Ammotragus  lervia  angusi. 

The  head  of  the  best  male  specimen  had  horns 
measuring  21  ins.  in  length  and  of  20j  ins.  span, 
while  the  animal  weighed  152  lbs.  The  largest 
sheep  I  shot  was  an  old  one  which  weighed  164  lbs., 
with  damaged  horns  that  had  no  larger  dimen- 
sions than  those  recorded  above. 


CHAPTER  XI 

IN    BAGUEZAN   MOUNTAINS 

I  HAD  no  sooner  departed  outside  the  immediate 
neighbourhood  of  the  Fort  of  Agades,  in  commenc- 
ing the  journey  to  Baguezan,  as  described  in  the 
preceding  chapter,  than  the  Chief,  Minerou,  and 
his  glib-tongued  companions,  who  had  all  put 
their  heads  together — even  the  two  goumiers 
joining  in — endeavoured  to  dissuade  me  from  my 
purpose  to  climb  into  Baguezan  Mountains,  and 
strongly  advised  my  return  to  Agades.  Their 
chief  argument  was  that  the  camels  carrying  my 
stores  could  not  possibly  ascend  the  mountain 
pass.  From  which  I  judged  that  they  were  fool- 
ishly suspicious  of  the  stranger,  and  did  not  want 
me  to  pry  into  their  mountain  stronghold.  They 
kept  up  plying  me  with  similar  doubtful  stories 
for  the  next  three  days,  by  which  time  we  had 
camped  at  Arra,  whereafter  they  desisted,  seeing 
that  I  would  on  no  account  be  shaken  in  my 
purpose  before  I  had  actually  seen  the  pass  in 
Baguezan.  The  following  days  of  sheep  hunting 
with  the  Chief  brought  us  more  closely  together  and 
enabled  me  to  break  down,  at  least  outwardly,  the 
barrier  of  distrust  of  me  ;  until,  in  a  moment  of 
confidence,  seeing  that  I  would  not  be  hoodwinked, 

164 


ASCENDING  MT.   BAGUEZAN  165 

he  went  so  far  as  to  admit  that  the  ascent  into 
Baguezan,  for  me  and  my  stores,  could  be  accom- 
plished. 

So  that  it  transpired  that  on  6th  May  we 
climbed  the  slopes  of  Baguezan  and  entered  the 
strange,  awesome  mountain  stronghold. 

There  are,  the  natives  declare,  but  two  ways  by 
which  camels  can  enter  Baguezan  mountains  : 
one  in  the  southern  slopes  above  a  camping-place 
known  to  the  natives  as  Tokede,  which  is  the  prin- 
cipal pass  and  that  which  we  used,  while  the  other 
(the  only  other  pass  I  have  seen,  which  endorses, 
to  some  extent,  native  statements)  lies  N.W.,  and 
is  a  means  of  exit  to,  or  entrance  from,  the  north, 
which  is  principally  used  at  the  present  time  by 
natives  passing  between  Baguezan  and  Timia. 
Both  are  rocky,  awkward  paths,  no  wider  than 
game-tracks,  that  wend  their  way  zigzagging 
upward  over  steep  slopes  where  foothold  for 
beasts  of  burden  has  been  searched  for  and  found 
possible,  while  in  many  rough  places  the  path  has 
been  hewn  and  excavated  by  the  hands  of  men 
where  it  has  been  necessary. 

Slowly  the  surefooted  patient  mountain-reared 
camels  of  Air  succeed  in  ascending  or  descending 
these  paths,  sometimes  slipping  and  falling  to 
their  knees,  so  treacherous  the  foothold,  and 
always  some  beasts  of  the  caravan  make  the 
journey  at  the  expense  of  torn  nails  and  bleeding 
feet. 

When  we  had  climbed  half-way  up  Baguezan 
and  had  paused  on  a  short  levelled  stretch  to  rest 
the  distressed  camels  and  their  rock-bruised  feet, 
as  was  necessary  from  time  to  time,  I  turned  back 


166     IN  BAGUEZAN  MOUNTAINS 

and  looked  below,  and  out  before  me  to  the  very 
horizon,  on  scenes  the  like  of  which  in  colouring 
and  utter  strangeness  I  had  never  witnessed 
before :  to  the  west  lay  the  mountains  Tchebishrie, 
Aouderas,  and  Arra,  and  a  score  of  others  that  are 
unnamed,  all  dark  and  towering  and  majestic ; 
while  in  the  forefront  the  rough  lowland  over 
which  we  had  travelled  now  looked,  from  a  height, 
like  level  flats,  barren  and  blackish  (on  account 
of  the  porous  lava  rock  and  hard  round  pebbles 
which  cover  the  land),  as  if  they  had  been  swept 
by  fire  and  only  the  ash  remained.  The  scenes 
are  overflowing  with  a  strange  drear  greyness, 
that  fills  the  heart  of  man  with  sadness,  except 
where  deep  ravines  run  out  from  the  mountains 
and  draw  therefrom  thin  lines  that  have  some- 
times their  beginning  in  the  brightness  of  dum 
palms,  or  "  Abisgee"  bushes,  which  grow  on  dry 
river-banks  of  certain  fertility,  and  which  trend  to 
lines  of  sand  colour  and  the  dull  greyness  of  leaf- 
less acacias  as  they  die  away  in  the  far  distance 
of  the  lowland. 

In  four  hours  we  had  ascended  to  the  summit, 
and  were  upon  a  plateau  covered  with  innumer- 
able rocky  hills,  through  which  we  wandered  in 
and  out  where  passage  for  the  camels  was  possible, 
and  two  hours  later  reached  the  small  village 
of  Tasessat,  hidden  in  the  hills,  where  I  decided 
to  pitch  a  permanent  collecting-camp. 

Baguezan  mountains  might  be  said  to  be  two 
storeys  high,  the  great  plateau  being  the  line 
of  the  first  and  principal  level,  whence  arise 
countless  hills  with  summits  of  various  elevations. 
The  altitude  of  Tasessat  village,  which  is  on  the 


A  GREAT  PLATEAU  167 

plateau,  is  5,200  ft.,  about  2,000  ft.  above  the  land 
at  the  mountain  base  of  Baguezan,  while  a  hill 
named  Tarusszgreet,  which  is  the  highest  rising 
from  the  plateau,  has  an  altitude  of  6,050  ft. 

The  plateau  of  Baguezan  is  perplexing  to 
describe  adequately.  There  are  countless  ranges 
of  hills,  sometimes  with  narrow  sand-jflats  and 
river-beds  between  ;  massive  hills  formed  of  giant 
grey  granite  boulders,  and  others  -  not  nearly  so 
numerous — with  rounded  summits  and  a  surface 
of  apparent  overlappings  and  down-pourings  of 
smooth  loose  reddish  and  grey  fragments,  as  if 
the  peaks  were  of  volcanic  origin,  though  no  craters 
are  there.  But  it  is  the  formation  of  the  many 
hills  of  giant  granite  boulders  that  make  the 
scenes  so  astonishing,  so  rugged,  and  so  unique  — 
you  might  be  on  the  roughest  sea  coast  in  the 
world,  and  not  find  scenes  to  surpass  those  here 
in  desolation  and  wildness.  They  are  hills  that 
appear  to  the  eye  as  if  a  mighty  energy  underneath 
had  at  some  time  heaved  and  shouldered  boulder 
upon  boulder  of  colossal  proportion  into  position, 
until  huge,  wide-based,  solid  masses  were  raised 
upon  the  plateau.  On  the  other  hand  there  are 
instances  where  hills  appear  as  if  the  forces  under- 
neath had  built  their  edifice  badly,  and  in  a 
manner  not  fit  to  withstand  the  ravages  of  time, 
and  those  are  places  where  part  of  the  pile  has 
apparently  collapsed,  and  there  remains  a  bleak 
cliff  face  and  the  ruins  of  rocks  at  the  foot.  Be- 
tween the  hills  the  narrow  defiles  which  make  up 
the  plateau  level  are,  in  general,  small  places  of 
sand,  where  scattered  acacias  grow  (some  to  a  fair 
height),  and  where,  in  certain  places,  dry  shallow 


168  IN   BAGUEZAN   MOUNTAINS 

sandy  stream-beds  find  a  course :  also  there  are 
flats,  with  ground  surface  of  pebbles,  which  are 
bare  as  the  hills  that  invest  them. 

From  the  plateau,  or  even  from  the  lower  hills, 
it  is  impossible  to  obtain  a  fair  conception  of  the 
area  of  Baguezan  mountains,  since  an  extensive 
view  is  blocked  in  all  directions  by  the  hills  which 
surround  one  on  all  sides.  But  from  the  top  of 
Tarusszgreet  a  splendid  view  may  be  obtained. 
The  great  hill-bearing  plateau  is  about  25  miles  in 
diameter,  with  an  edge  that,  viewed  from  the 
commanding  height  of  Tarusszgreet,  appears 
almost  as  round  as  a  tea-cup.  Looking  down 
on  the  land  on  all  sides  from  this  pinnacle  that 
permits  an  unbroken  view  north,  south,  east,  and 
west,  the  scene  is  a  memorable  and  a  striking  one  : 
rocks,  boulders,  and  grave  greyness  predominate 
all  else,  for,  as  far  as  an  eye  can  see  within  the 
limits  of  Baguezan,  nearly  the  whole  land  is  one  of 
barren  hills — barren,  that  is,  of  fertility,  but  not 
of  wild  native  beauty,  even  impressiveness.  It 
strikes  one  most  forcibly  as  a  place  of  fearful 
poverty,  but,  even  though  the  blackness  of  the 
grey  rocks  so  strongly  predominates,  there  are, 
as  in  the  country  south  of  Baguezan,  brighter 
scenes  on  a  miniature  scale  in  the  pleasant  little 
basins  or  sandy  pockets  on  the  plateau,  where,  in 
places,  the  line  of  a  dry  stream-bed  may  be  traced, 
and  where  straggling  acacias  stand  darkly  dotted 
against  a  huffish  sandy  background.  Be  the  eye 
attracted  to  the  broad  masses  of  grey  hills,  or  to 
the  little  gleams  of  golden  sand,  the  view  from  the 
lofty  height  of  Tarusszgreet,  somewhat  vaguely 
sad  though  it  be,  captures  the  appreciation  of  the 


TYPIC.VL    BOULDER    COMTOSITIOX    OP    ATAXi'    Alil    ilOUXTAlXS    AXD    HHiLS. 


Mi.vKUor,  CiiiKF  vi    i;ai.i  i;/.A.v,    and   .-aiiii,    mv   i,<ir.\ni:]{. 


168] 


BEAUTY  IN  AFRICA  169 

mountaineer,  who  cannot  help,  unless  he  be  an 
unresponsive  soul  indeed,  being  enraptured  with 
the  wonderful  space  of  earth  and  sky  which  his 
position  for  the  moment  commands,  and  with 
the  details  of  a  hundred  mysterious  scenes  con- 
tained within  the  miniature  kingdom  that  lies 
beneath  his  feet.  Particularly  at  sunrise  or  sun- 
set is  the  view  fair,  when  short-lived  lights  rest 
on  the  broad  rugged  surface  of  mountain-side 
scene,  and  dip  delicately  into  the  valleys  to  be 
absorbed  by  lurking  shadows.  Those  are  precious 
moments  in  a  day,  or,  might  I  say,  in  a  lifetime  ? 

There  is  much  beauty  in  Africa,  though  that  is 
a  circumstance  which,  I  believe,  we  do  not  often 
realise  or  speak  about,  because,  I  fear,  beauty  is 
often  missed,  or  at  least  fails  to  receive  full 
appreciation,  since,  to  view  any  fair  picture  with 
full  and  generous  reflection,  the  individual  or  audi- 
ence should  be  in  the  cleanness  of  health  and  good 
spirits  that  lead  to  enthusiasm  and  energy  and 
praise  ;  and,  alas,  such  a  state  of  mind  is  all  too 
seldom  the  white  man's  lot  beneath  a  sun  that  is 
hourly  tapping  his  precious  store  of  vitality. 

In  ascending  to  the  plateau  of  Baguezan,  one 
enters  a  secretive  stronghold  of  a  small  band  of 
Tuaregs,  and  I  think  it  is  because  Baguezan  is  a 
natural  fortification,  for  the  most  part  inaccess- 
ible to  robbers  or  to  any  stranger,  that  we  to-day 
find  any  natives  living  in  Air  north  of  Agades  and 
its  immediate  neighbourhood.  I  have  said  else- 
where that  Timia,  Aouderas,  and  Baguezan  are 
the  only  places  now  inhabited  in  Air  north  of 
Agades,  and  both  Timia  and  Aouderas  are  near  to 
the  foot  of  Baguezan,  so  that,  when  robbers 
13 


170  IN   BAGUE2AN   MOUNTAINS 

threaten,  the  camels  of  the  inhabitants  of  those 
two  places  can,  if  the  danger  warrants,  be  driven 
on  to  the  plateau  for  safety,  while  the  natives 
scatter  broadcast  among  the  rocks — a  procedure 
which  occurred  once  while  I  was  there. 

There  are  in  Baguezan  mountains  at  the  present 
time  six  tiny  villages.  They  are  :  Tasessat,  the 
chief  village  where  I  camped,  whence  radiate 
the  bearings  given  below ;  Argargar,  about  8 
miles  distant  from  Tasessat,  on  a  bearing  of  330°; 
Ouwari,  on  the  same  bearing,  not  far  from  Tasessat, 
on  the  track  to  Argargar;  Egulubilub,  3  to  4  miles 
from  Tasessat,  on  a  bearing  of  140° ;  Emuludi,  on 
the  same  bearing,  about  one  mile  distant  from 
Tasessat ;  Atkaki,  near  Tasessat,  on  a  bearing  of 
220°.  Excepting  Tasessat,  none  of  these  villages 
are  on  any  map  I  possess. 

The  dwellings  now  in  use  in  the  villages  are 
mere  tiny,  gipsy-like  sun-shelters  of  a  type  com- 
mon to  the  inhabitants  of  Air.  They  are  con- 
structed with  lathes  of  wood  bent  over  to  form 
a  dome  framework,  which  is  round  in  plan  and  a 
half-round  in  elevation.  Upon  the  framework 
hay-grass  is  laced  securely,  or  skins,  to  keep  out 
sun  and  a  certain  amount  of  sand-dust.  They 
are  no  higher  than  permits  an  average  man  to 
stand  upright  inside,  while  the  floor  space  can 
little  more  than  accommodate  two  or  three  out- 
stretched forms.  Gipsy -like,  they  are  not  in  any 
degree  extravagant  in  labour  of  construction  or 
in  expenditure  of  material,  from  which  it  may  be 
gathered  that  the  natives  are  lazy  and  material 
scarce. 

There  are  a  number  of  stone-built  dwellings 


RUINS  171 

at  Tasessat  and  elsewhere,  but  nowhere  are  they 
occupied  by  the  natives,  who  have  allowed  them 
to  relapse  to  a  state  of  ruin.  Whether  those 
strange  old  dwellings  belonged  to  a  race  which  at 
one  time  the  Tuaregs  conquered,  or  to  their  own 
ancestors,  I  do  not  know,  though  I  am  inclined 
to  think  that  they  are  of  Hausa  origin.  At  all 
events,  they  belong  solely  to  the  Past,  when,  at 
some  time  or  other,  there  were  many  people  in 
the  Baguezan  mountains,  for  in  numerous  places 
are  to  be  found  the  old  sites  of  villages  where  huts 
were  built  of  stone :  in  some  cases  the  whole 
village  completely  overthrown,  in  others  a  few 
skeletons  of  huts  standing.  Also  there  are  many 
strange  old  graveyards,  sometimes  near  an  old 
village  site,  sometimes  where  no  sign  of  dwelling- 
place  remains.  They  are  usually  on  a  level  stony 
piece  of  ground,  chosen,  I  surmise,  because  jackals 
cannot  scrape  down  through  such  a  surface,  and 
the  graves,  which  have  lain  there  through  ages, 
are  still  marked  with  mounds  of  pebbles  heaped 
body-length,  or  with  borders  of  selected  stones 
laid  out  in  the  shape  of  a  coffin ;  while  in  some 
cases  the  wood  poles,  which  support  the  stones 
laid  over  the  grave,  have  given  out,  and  the  grave 
lies  partly  open. 

The  natives  of  to-day  point  to  ruins  of  this 
kind,  and  tell,  with  a  very  real  ring  of  sadness  in 
their  voices,  that  they  mark  the  full  and  awful 
extent  of  decline  in  population — ^the  ravages  of 
war  and  the  pillage  at  the  hands  of  raiders  who, 
even  to-day,  descend  upon  the  hapless  decadent 
people  to  steal  their  camels  and  take  their  young 
men  and  women  into  slavery. 


172  IN    BAGUEZAN   MOUNTAINS 

Minerou  and  the  old  headman  of  Tasessat  declare 
that  natives  of  Baguezan  of  the  present  time  have 
not  fled  or  been  driven  to  the  low  country  in  the 
south.  Such  a  thing  could  not  possibly  be,  they 
say,  "  for  there  are  no  mountains  there,  and  how 
could  we  live  without  them  ?  " — true  mountain 
people,  the  land  of  their  birth  dear  to  their  hearts 
as  their  freedom. 

To-day  there  are  altogether  only  40  male 
Tuaregs  in  Baguezan  mountains  ;  that  is,  adult 
men  at  the  head  of  a  family. 

According  to  native  statement,  there  has  never 
been,  in  living  memory,  an  English-speaking 
white  man  in  Baguezan  before  ;  and  no  one,  they 
say,  has  camped  or  roamed  about  the  hills  as  I 
have  done,  in  which  event  I  trust  this  humble 
description  of  the  place  may  hold  some  particular 
interest.  Old  natives  say  that,  previous  to  my 
visit,  there  have  been,  in  all,  three  white  men  in 
Baguezan  :  French  officers  who  have  had  occasion 
to  enter  Baguezan  in  course  of  performing  duty, 
and  who  did  not  remain  there  any  length  of  time. 

The  natives  of  Baguezan,  like  all  natives  of  Air, 
get  the  grain  which  is  their  principal  food  chiefly 
from  Tanout  and  district,  a  journey  of  about  496 
miles  altogether,  outward  and  homeward.  It  is 
transported  by  caravans  of  camels.  On  some 
occasions  the  natives  carry  south  with  them,  to 
market,  dates,  which  they  get  chiefly  from  Fachi, 
but  a  few  from  Air,  and  goat  hides.  Fachi,  and 
also  Bilma,  are  oases  on  the  desert  east  of  Air. 
Fachi,  according  to  the  natives,  is  fifteen  days' 
caravan  journey  from  Baguezan,  and  Bilma  30 
days' journey.     Both  places  are  very  well  known 


MOUNTAIN  CLIMATE  173 

to  the  natives  of  the  territory,  for  it  is  chiefly  from 
those  places  that  they  obtain  salt  for  themselves 
and  their  camels. 

With  regard  to  the  climate  of  Baguezan,  the 
inhabitants  say  that  they  have  no  snow  in  the 
mountains  at  any  time,  but  there  is  ice  in  the  cold 
season  (about  November).  Personally  I  have  wit- 
nessed a  shower  of  large  hailstones  in  Baguezan, 
similar  to  occurrences  of  the  kind  witnessed  in 
South  Africa  and  during  a  Canadian  summer, 
when  such  hail-showers  sometimes  fall  in  the 
course  of  a  particularly  violent  thunderstorm. 
To  one  who  comes  from  the  stifling  hot  desert,  the 
remarkable  clearness  of  the  air  of  Baguezan  gives 
untold  delight,  while  the  coolness  of  morning  and 
evening  in  the  mountains  goes  far  toward  reviving 
drooping  vitality.  In  my  case  I  often  look  back 
and  doubt  if  I  could  have  completed  the  under- 
taking without  a  disastrous  breakdown  had  I  not 
had  the  good  fortune  to  pick  up  a  new  store  of 
vigour  during  my  stay  among  the  mountain- 
tops    of  Baguezan. 

I  noted  the  following  temperatures  during  the 
month  of  May:  daybreak,  60°,  62°,  68°,  74° 
Fahr.  ;  noon,  96°  Fahr.  ;  sundown,  80°,  76°,  74° 
Fahr. 

I  hope  to  describe  the  Tuaregs  of  Air  in  a  later 
chapter,  and  for  the  moment,  so  far  as  the  natives 
of  Baguezan  are  concerned,  may  briefly  say  that 
they  are  true  mountain  people,  not  very  tall, 
sturdily  built,  strong  in  wind  and  limb,  and  extra- 
ordinarily active  in  hill-climbing.  But  they  are 
cunning,  shifty,  and  suspicious  people,  and  I  never 
felt  I  was   made  a  friend  among  them  ;    and 


174  IN   BAGUEZAN   MOUNTAINS 

Baguezan,  up  to  the  present,  ranks  as  the  one 
place  where  I  have  felt  frustrated  in  overtures 
toward  friendship  with  the  local  inhabitants.  I 
hunted  in  Baguezan  from  6th  May  to  7th  June, 
but  my  feeling  of  insecurity  may  be  judged  in  that 
I  pitched  camp  well  apart  from  the  village  of 
Tasessat  and  surrounded  it  with  a  strong  thorn 
zereba,  through  which  no  one  could  enter  without 
disturbance,  and  never  lay  down  at  night  without 
my  loaded  rifle  by  my  side. 

I  consider  I  had  only  one  friend  in  Baguezan  :  a 
native  who  might  be  called  the  local  smith,  for  he 
handled  a  bellows  that  nourished  a  coke  fire  and 
welded  primitive  tools  and  weapons  and  trinkets 
for  the  people.  He  often  came  to  my  camp  un- 
called, and  gladly  did  me  any  service  that  I  wished 
that  was  within  his  power.  Next  to  him  I  trusted 
most  the  chief,  Minerou ;  principally  because  I 
knew  him  well — his  good  points  and  his  faults. 
With  him  I  was  friends,  at  least  outwardly — as 
friendly  as  one  can  be  with  a  person  shrewdly 
suspected  of  being  an  unscrupulous  rascal.  The 
commandant  at  Agades,  replying  to  a  letter  of 
mine  from  Baguezan,  wrote  with  regard  to 
Minerou  :  "  Yes  I  the  Chief  of  Baguezan  is  under- 
neath full  of  slyness  :  and  so  they  all  are.  But 
you  know  the  bush  law  better  than  myself,  and  I 
rely  upon  your  carefully  watching.  Don't  trust 
any  of  them." 

I  find  in  my  diary  the  following  notes  of  the 
Chief  of  Baguezan  :  "  Among  his  people  he  is  a 
king,  and  all  appear  to  obey  his  command.  How 
he  obtains  authority  over  his  wild-natured  flock 
is,  to  me,  mysterious,  yet  the  power  of  king  is  his. 


SUSPICIOUS  NATIVES  175 

He  is  wise  in  a  cunning  way,  and  appears  to  have 
greater  capacity  for  enterprise  and  work  than  any 
of  his  people.  Like  all  Tuaregs,  he  has  no  subter- 
fuge in  his  greed  for  food  or  clothing  or  money. 
He  professes  to  be  my  friend,  yet  at  heart  I  know 
he  is  full  of  suspicion  of  the  stranger,  and  is  friends, 
in  reality,  only  with  my  purse,  and,  also,  because 
he  fears  the  military  authorities  at  Agades.  In  his 
religion,  Mohammedan,  or  sect  of  Mohammedan, 
he  is  very  devout,  and  at  sunrise  or  sunset,  no 
matter  what  occupation  he  may  interrupt,  he 
never  fails  to  address  his  incantations  and  salaams 
to  the  east ;  and  I  would  not  be  surprised  if  the 
excessive  zeal  of  his  devotion  induces  the  belief 
that  his  faith  is  supreme,  and  shuts  out  the  white 
man  as  a  fanatic  or  an  enemy  to  his  God." 

In  time  the  period  of  hunting  among  the  Bagu- 
ezan  mountains  came  to  an  end,  and  I  turned  my 
thoughts  to  travelling  northward,  an  undertaking 
not  altogether  looked  on  with  favour  by  the 
authorities  at  Agades,  who,  though  desirous  of 
helping  me,  declared,  like  the  natives,  that  the 
journey  entailed,  perhaps,  foolish  risk.  My  own 
view  of  the  matter  is  partly  contained  in  the 
following  letter  to  the  commandant  at  Agades  : 
".  .  .  with  regard  to  going  further  north,  I  place 
myself  entirely  in  your  hands,  knowing  you  will 
advise  me  for  the  best  and  assist  me  where  you  can. 
I  realise  even  here  that  there  is  risk  and  that  one 
must  ever  be  careful  and  on  the  alert,  but  nothing 
worth  while  was  ever  accomplished  without  over- 
coming difficulties,  and  I  would  much  like,  since 
I  have  come  so  far  with  that  purpose,  to 
complete  my  journey  fully  in  Air.     From  my  map 


176     IN  BAGUEZAN  MOUNTAINS 

I  estimate  that  Aguellal  is  4  to  5  days  further 
north  and  Iferouan  1  to  2  days   more   (Iferouan 
would  be  the  end  of  my  northward  journey),  while 
outward  or  homeward  I  would  like  to  visit  Assode. 
I  purpose  travelling  very  light,  and  estimate  that 
3    or   4  camels   would    suj0fice  for   the   journey. 
Regarding  escort,  I  leave  the  matter  entirely  with 
you,  who  know  conditions  much  better  than  I  do. 
For  my  own  part,  I  am  ready  to  undertake  any 
risk,  but  any  natives  who  may  accompany  me 
might  feel  reassured  with  a  small  show  of  rifles. 
This  is  a  type  of  mountain  country  where  but  a  few 
armed  men  could  put  up  a  great  fight — if  not 
taken  by  surprise  in  the  dark.    But  now  there  is 
the  chief  point :   to  obtain  one  native  who  knows 
where  there  is  water  to  be  found  on  the  journey. 
The  Chief  of  Baguezan  declares  none  of  his  people 
know  the  north  territory,  though  I  doubt  his  state- 
ment, and  strongly  suspect  it  is  prompted  by  the 
universal  fear  of  entering  an  ill-reputed  neighbour- 
hood.    Possibly  a  guide  can  be  secured  in  Agades? 
Where  men  from  the  north  are  to  be  found,  you, 
of  course,  know,  and  in  this,  as  in  everything,  I 
will  await  your  consideration  of  the  matter  and 
your  advice." 

Which  letter  brought  satisfactory  results  ;  so 
that  on  the  afternoon  of  7th  June  I  was  able  to 
commence  the  journey  to  Iferouan,  situated  in 
the  extreme  north  of  Air. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE    NORTHERN    REGIONS    OF    AIR  :      PART    I 

On  6th  June  I  received  a  letter  from  the  com- 
mandant at  Agades  suggesting  that  I  proceed  at 
once  on  my  contemplated  journey  to  the  northern 
regions  of  Air,  proposing  that  I  push  forward 
under  conditions  that  would  restrict  the  time  that 
I  remain  beyond  communication  with  Agades  to 
a  period  of  15  days.  This  was  short  time  indeed 
for  the  journey,  and  would  entail  constant  travel- 
ling, but  I  had  no  wish  to  question  the  desire  of 
the  French  authorities,  who,  with  kindness  and 
courtesy,  assisted  me  in  every  way  in  their  power 
to  make  the  expedition  a  success  ;  therefore,  to 
this  proposal  I  at  once  concurred,  and  sent  back 
a  message  to  say  that  if  all  went  well,  news  of  me 
might  be  expected  at  Agades  not  later  than  23rd 
June. 

At  the  same  time  I  was  advised  that  six  goumiers, 
to  join  me  at  Timia,  would  be  despatched  from 
Agades  on  the  following  day,  which,  with  Atagoom 
and  Saidi  (the  goumiers  already  with  me)  and 
myself,  would  make  up  a  party  of  nine  rifles  for  the 
journey.  Atagoom  and  Saidi,  who  had  now  been 
with  me  for  more  than  a  month,  had  become  very 
friendly,  and  had  grown  familiar  with  the  white 

177 


178  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   I 

man's  ways,  so  that  I  was  particularly  glad  that 
they  were  available  for  the  forthcoming  journey. 
They  were,  like  all  Tuaregs,  very  lazy  when  about 
camp,  but  splendid  camel-men  and  travellers 
when  once  out  on  the  trail,  Atagoom  in  particu- 
lar being  an  exceptionally  active  and  tireless 
individual. 

At  the  last  moment,  when  loading  up  the  camels 
in  preparation  to  depart  from  Baguezan,  the  Chief 
offered  me  a  man  to  look  after  my  camels  on  the 
way  to  Timia ;  a  powerfully  built  fellow,  bigger 
than  the  average  native  of  Air,  and  appropriately 
named  Dogo,  which  is  Hausa  for  tall,  though  he 
was  more  often  addressed  as  Buzu,  the  Tamashack 
for  slave — for  such  he  was,  free  to  all  outward 
appearance,  but  bound  to  the  service  of  the  Chief 
in  some  mysterious  way  and  dependent  upon  him. 
This  man,  like  so  many  others,  was  not  a  pure- 
blooded  Tuareg— probably  not  of  Tuareg  descent 
at  all,  for  he  was  a  descendant  of  slaves — although 
he  spoke  their  language  and  dressed  as  they  did. 
He  was  a  remarkably  reticent  individual,  and 
never  spoke  a  word  to  me  unless  I  first  addressed 
him,  when  he  would  couch  his  answer  in  a  few 
brief  syllables,  and  then  shut  up  like  a  clam.  I 
give  those  few  particulars  of  Dogo  because,  al- 
though he  set  out  merely  to  accompany  me  to 
Timia,  he  came  forward  a  couple  of  days  later  and 
voluntarily  offered  to  go  the  journey  north  with 
me  :  which  he  did,  and  thenceforward  this  strange 
fellow,  who  never  gave  outward  demonstration 
of  human  feeling,  attached  himself  devotedly 
to  my  caravan  (with  the  consent  of  the  Chief), 
and   looked    after    the   camels   during  all  sub- 


A  NEW  HENCmiAN  179 

sequent  travel  in  Air,  and,  in  the  end,  accom- 
panied me  all  the  way  back  to  Kano.  Which 
was  great  good  fortune  for  me,  for  he  was  a 
splendid  worker,  and  soon  grew  familiar  with 
the  animals  and  their  burdens,  the  way  in  which 
I  liked  to  load  up  or  off-load,  his  duties  in  camp, 
and  in  tending  the  camels  when  turned  out  to 
graze,  so  that  in  time  I  needed  to  pay  little 
attention  to  him,  feeling  secure  that  no  detail 
would  be  forgotten. 

We  left  Tasessat  about  2  p.m.  on  7th  June, 
and  travelled  over  the  plateau  in  a  north-westerly 
direction,  heading  for  the  Pass  that  gave  exit 
to  Timia.  Our  route  over  the  plateau  was  far 
from  a  direct  one,  since  it  was  necessary  to 
dodge  in  and  out  to  evade  the  numerous  hills, 
while  it  was  over  cruelly  rough  country  almost 
altogether  of  stones  and  rocks,  which  punished 
the  camels'  feet  severely ;  so  severely  that,  after 
an  equally  hard  journey  the  following  day,  one 
of  the  animals  had  to  be  discarded  when  reach- 
ing Timia.  We  were  still  on  the  plateau  at 
sundown,  and  camped  about  an  hour's  journey 
from  the  head  of  the  Pass. 

Next  day  travel  was  resumed,  and  we  soon 
came  to  the  top  of  the  pass,  where  a  magnificent 
view  from  the  mountain  edge  lay  before  us  of 
the  wide  gradient  of  the  rough  hill-covered 
Baguezan  mountain  sides,  and  of  the  very  broad 
valley  which  lay  westwards  between  us  and  the 
Bela  mountains,  and  is  drained  northward  in 
time  of  rain  by  the  Assada  river  and  its  numerous 
tributaries. 

Throughout   the    day    I    was    delighted    and 


180  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   I 

astonished  by  the  wealth  of  everchanging  scene 
of  mountain  and  hill  and  valley,  hardly  finishing 
appreciation  of  one  striking  picture  before  it 
changed,  as  we  moved  onward,  and  another  came 
into  view  to  arrest  attention.  (To  my  mind,  wild 
mountain  scenery,  second  only  to  the  magnificent 
views  which  surround  Timia,  is  here  seen  at  its 
best  in  Air — a  region  rich  in  mountain  landscape.) 
In  the  Infinite  Detail  I  found  greatest  attraction, 
detail  of  constant  change  of  form  and  contour, 
and  perspective  of  country  full  of  rugged  features. 
It  is  not  scene  that  is  rich  in  colour,  being  over- 
clouded with  the  dominant  dull  greyness  of  the 
bare  rock  and  stone,  and  therefore,  perhaps, 
contains  no  great  appeal  to  one  who  might 
appraise  it  with  the  eye  of  a  painter;  rather 
would  I  suggest  that  it  holds  appeal  for  the  etcher, 
insomuch  that  there  is  such  a  wealth  of  detail, 
detail  delicate  or  superbly  masterful,  in  form  and 
outline,  in  grotesque  shapes,  and  in  strength  of 
shadow. 

So  far  as  travel  underfoot  was  concerned,  we 
put  in  a  long  arduous  day,  first  descending  the 
pass  out  of  Baguezan,  which  is  a  more  rugged  and 
difficult  one  than  that  in  the  south,  and  then  con- 
tinuing among  foothills  that  never  offered  a  level 
course,  so  that  we  were  constantly  climbing  or 
descending  rocky,  stony  hill-ground  or  dipping  into 
the  numerous  ravines  that  crossed  our  path  ;  and 
we  were  still  about  a  day's  journey  from  Timia 
when  we  camped  at  night. 

Before  dawn  on  the  following  day — 9th  June— 
we  had  risen  from  our  hard  beds  on  the  open 
ground     (I    had    left   all    camp    equipment    in 


ROUGH  COUNTRY  181 

Baguezan,  so  that  this  journey  should  not  be 
unnecessarily  hampered  with  baggage)  and 
pushed  on  to  Timia,  which  it  was  necessary 
we  should  reach  this  day,  for  we  had  been 
unable  to  find  water  at  sundown  yesterday, 
and  had  almost  finished  the  store  in  our  goat- 
skin bags. 

Daylight  found  us  slowly  advancing  northward, 
in  towards  Agalak  mountains,  which  loomed 
massively  in  a  long  line  before  us  ;  at  first  dimly, 
haze-softened, then  growing  to  a  frowning  coimten- 
ance,  in  which  cliffs  and  clefts  and  precipitous 
ravines  could  be  discerned.  By  which  time  we 
began  to  swing  easterly,  keeping  the  slopes  of 
Agalak  mountains,  which  appear  to  have  a  plateau 
summit,  not  far  distant  on  our  left,  while 
Baguezan  mountains  lay  almost  out  of  sight 
on  our  right.  About  11  o'clock,  after  toiling 
up  and  down  dale,  over  stone-strewn  ground 
and  among  rocks  that  presented  difficulty  to 
free  travel  as  constantly  as  yesterday,  we 
emerged  on  to  a  wide  river-bed  of  loose  sand 
which  bore  the  name  of  Abarakan  in  the  locality 
where  we  intersected  it.  Still  heading  east,  we 
continued  up  the  river  course  for  a  long  time  in 
the  full  heat  of  day  and  with  the  sun-glare  re- 
bounding off  the  sand,  which  was  very  loose  and 
powdery,  as  in  all  river-beds  in  Air,  and  heavy 
underfoot  for  the  camels,  but  vastly  better  than 
the  terrible  mountain  trail  we  had  left  behind. 
About  1.30  p.m.  we  branched  off  the  river,  ascend- 
ing the  right  bank  on  to  a  small  level  stony  plain 
which  lay  beneath  the  western  slopes  of  some  low 
hills  near  to  and  S.E.  of  the  Timia  range.      We 


182  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   I 

crossed  this  plain  in  a  northerly  direction,   into 
which  course  the  river  had  also  turned  just  about 
the  time  we  parted  from  it,  and  even  now  the  river 
channel  was  not  far  distant  on  our  left,  drawing 
a  parallel  line  also  to  Timia,  but  not  so  directly 
as  the  one  which  Dogo,  the  local  native,  was 
following.     However,  at  the  head  of  the  rocky 
plain,  where  it  terminated  at  the  foot  of  hills 
which  shut  it  in  completely,  we  again  intercepted 
the  river,  about  2  miles  from  Timia,  where  pre- 
cipitous slopes  dipped  to  the  very  edge  of  the 
east  bank  and  completely  blocked  passage  on  that 
side.     Hence  we  entered  the  river-bed  again,  and 
travelled  up  it  a  little  way,  between  steep  banks, 
until  we  came  to  the  mouth  of  Timia  Gorge,  and 
encountered  the  strange  and  formidable  barrier 
that  there  shuts  off  further  progress  up  the  river. 
This  obstacle  was  the  sheer  cliff  of  a  dry  waterfall 
of  height  of  some  25  to  30  ft.,  and,  in  conjunction 
with  the  closely  crowding  hill-sides  on  either  bank, 
it  appeared  to  close  the  narrow  neck  between  the 
hills  altogether.    But  native  wit,  or  necessity,  had 
found  a  way  to  force  a  door  in  the  barrier,  to  give 
passage  to  caravans  into  the  rich  gorge  that  lay 
beyond,  for  close  examination  of  the  west  bank  of 
the  river  reveals  a  winding,  precipitous,  cave-like 
staircase  hewn  out  of  the  solid  rock,  which  ascends 
to  the  top  of  the  high  bank,  where  there  is  space 
enough,  and  no  more,  between  mountain  base  and 
river-bank,  to  allow  camels  to  pass  above  the  fall. 
One  by  one  we  led  each  camel  into  this  stairway, 
which  they  had  to  strain  and  struggle  to  ascend, 
and  humoured  them  slowly  upwards,  until    all 
were  safely  at  the  top,  when  we  proceeded  up 


TIMIA  GORGE  183 

the  broad  river-bed  into  Timia  without  further 
hindrance. 

Timia  Gorge  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  most  beauti- 
ful spot  in  Air  and  the  most  fertile.  It  has  a 
length  of  some  three  or  four  miles,  through  which 
the  wide  shallow  river-bed  winds  (I  judge  the  river 
to  be  75  to  100  yards  wide),  while  the  steep  slopes 
of  the  majestic  heights  of  Agalak  and  Timia  moun- 
tains descend  on  either  side  to  its  very  margin, 
leaving,  in  places,  narrow  little  stretches  of 
ground  upon  the  banks,  no  wider  than  a  mansion 
garden,  which  are  irrigated  by  means  of  wells 
and  cultivated  by  the  natives  to  grow  wheat  and 
millet  and  maize,  or  bear  thick  groves  of  date 
palms. 

We  entered  Timia  village  about  4  p.m.,  and 
were  warmly  welcomed  by  the  fine  old  headman, 
who  acted  as  deputy  in  absence  of  the  Chief 
Fougda.  I  was  amused  to  find  that,  as  in  many 
other  instances,  all  the  natives  who  gathered 
around  while  we  off-loaded  already  knew  of  me 
and  wanted  to  look  on  "  the  hunting  white  man," 
while  many  of  the  women  and  children  of  the 
village,  who  did  not  travel  to  Agades  like  the  men, 
had  never  seen  a  European  before,  and  were  vastly 
interested  in  a  timid,  furtive  way. 

I  was  greatly  pleased  with  Timia  village,  which 
is  built  chiefly  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river  in  a 
small  open  flat  stony  pocket  at  the  eastern  base  of 
Agalak.  The  small  dome  dwellings  are  the  same 
as  those  on  Baguezan,  but  built  with  more  care, 
while  there  is  a  decided  appearance  of  neatness 
and  tidiness  in  the  whole  village  which  I  found 
lacking   elsewhere   in    inhabited   places   in   Air. 


184  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    I 

Moreover,  I  found  the  people  really  industrious  in 
working  their  riverside  gardens,  and,  in  fact, 
when  I  came  to  see  more  of  them  a  week  or  two 
later,  I  judged  them  to  be  the  most  superior  tribe 
I  had  encountered  in  Air. 

The  six  goumiers  from  Agades  joined  me  at 
Timia,  heavily  masked,  like  all  Tuaregs,  with 
yashmak,  which  leaves  only  the  eyes  uncovered, 
and  picturesquely  dressed  in  cotton  robes  of 
various  colours  ;  while  the  old  headman  brought 
forward  a  young  fellow  named  Homa,  who  had 
been  born  in  Iferouan  and  was  to  act  as  guide, 
and,  in  particular,  point  out  where  water  was  to 
be  found.  He  and  another  man  had  been  part  of 
the  way  north  about  a  month  before  trying  to 
trap  donkeys,  which  escaped  from  the  natives  at 
the  time  of  the  evacuations,  or  out  of  the  hands 
of  robbers,  and  are  now  running  completely  wild 
in  Air.  (Later  I  saw  fresh  tracks  of  one  band,  and 
many  signs  of  them  where  they  had  been  feeding.) 
Those  men  succeeded  in  trapping  one  donkey, 
but  say  the  brutes  are  terribly  wild  and  difficult 
to  catch. 

The  altitude  of  the  stream-bed  at  Timia  village 
is  3,800  feet,  while  some  of  the  splendid  tops  of 
Timia  mountains,  which  are  higher  than  Agalak 
(map  alt. :  4,593  ft.),  appear  to  be  easily  2,000  to 
3,000  ft.  more,  and  it  would  not  surprise  me  if 
the  highest  altitude  in  Air  is  contained  in  Timia 
mountains,  and  I  regret  I  had  not  occasion  or  time 
to  climb  to  the  highest  peak. 

Next  morning,  10th  June,  we  left  Timia  and 
started  on  the  long  journey  north  in  uninhabited 
regions.     In  the  early  part  of  the  day  we  travelled 


UNINHABITED   REGIONS  185 

over  rough,  broken,  rocky  country  until  Tiggeur 
was  reached,  the  abandoned  site  of  a  village  (alt. 
3,700  ft.),  where  there  are  a  few  date  palms  and  an 
old  well  which  contains  no  water.  To  the  east 
the  country  had  appeared  more  open  thus  far,  and 
contained  a  number  of  small  hills,  while  on  the 
west  lay  the  high  slopes  of  Agalak  mountains. 
Thereafter  we  continued  by  Tiggeur  and  Teguednu 
river-beds,  which  had  bare,  almost  treeless  banks, 
and  camped  at  the  junction  where  the  latter 
stream  and  the  Asselar  meet  and  become  the 
broad  Agoras  river-bed,  which  trends  away  N.W. 
to  the  ancient  town  of  Assod^.  Altitude  at  this 
camping-place,  3,150  ft. 

To-night  and  henceforth  a  sentry  was  posted 
and  the  camels  made  to  lie  down  in  a  half-circle, 
while  the  goumiers  slept  beside  them,  so  that  we 
were  prepared  in  the  event  of  robbers  stealing 
in  upon  us. 

11th  June. — Slight  rain  in  early  part  of 
night ;  otherwise  no  disturbance.  Woke  once 
or  twice,  hearing  the  sentry  moving  about  in 
idle  wakefulness,  which  recalled  habits  of  active 
service. 

Left  our  night  camping-place  about  an  hour 
before  dawn  and  travelled  to  Igouloulof.  To-day 
we  passed  through  country  more  open  in  expanse, 
not  in  general  so  mountainous  as  hitherto,  which 
contained  in  the  rough  lowlands  some  level 
stretches  of  sand  and  stone,  while  Goundai 
mountains  loomed  large  and  very  conspicuous  at 
a  distance  to  the  east. 

Igouloulof  (altitude,  2,950  ft.),  on  the  north 
bank  of  a  sandy  river-bed  that  trends  east,  proved 
14 


186  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    I 

to  be  a  small  deserted  village  among  rocks  com- 
posed of  remarkably  well-built,  flat-roofed  stone 
huts,  which  are  whitish-grey  in  colour  owing  to 
the  use  of  a  natural  cement  in  their  construction, 
apparently  obtained  from  open  pits  in  the  village. 
The  huts  bear  a  strange  aspect  against  the  black 
rocks,  showing  like  little  square  pill-boxes  inset 
here  and  there  with  pleasing  irregularity.  They 
are  built  without  system  in  laying  the  stone — ^no 
rubble,  no  regular  jointing,  just  a  jumble  of  stones 
that  are  not  very  large,  set  in  a  liberal  bed  of 
mortar. 

Such  places,  now  deserted — ^and  there  are  many 
in  Air — fill  me  with  sadness  ;  they  are  often  in 
pleasant  situations,  and  picturesque  even  now, 
notwithstanding  the  strange  bleakness  and  still- 
ness of  the  land,  but  one  cannot  refrain  from 
thinking  how  much  more  attractive  Air  would  be 
if  occupied  by  happy  natives,  and  a  wayfarer 
could  see,  instead  of  this  melancholy  desolation, 
smoke  of  wood-fires  rising  and  hear  homely 
sounds. 

It  is  difficult  to  ascertain  from  the  natives,  with 
any  certainty  of  accuracy,  the  period  when  Air 
first  began  to  decline  in  population,  though,  of 
course,  they  all  know  of  the  final  desertion  which 
took  place,  about  three  years  ago,  in  the  forced 
evacuations  following  on  the  Rebellion  of  1916, 
when  the  remnants  of  the  Tuareg  inhabitants 
were  commanded  by  the  French  authorities  to 
settle  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Agades  under 
direct  protection  of  the  Fort  and  within  reach  of 
surveillance.  But  this  last  was  a  comparatively 
small  affair,  and  does  not  by  any  means  account 


STRICKEN  AIR  187 

for  the  loss  of  the  large  population,  which,  if  one  is 
to  judge  by  the  numerous  ruins  of  old  villages  and 
graveyards,  once  occupied  the  Air  mountains. 
Apart  from  the  question  of  the  extent  of  oppres- 
sion pursued  by  stronger  tribes  from  outside 
territories,  I  am  prone  to  wonder  if  Air  has  under- 
gone any  great  geological  change  or  climatic 
change  which  has  made  it  less  fertile  than  hither- 
to ?  For  it  seems  to  me  that  want  and  hunger 
are  the  most  tangible  causes  that  drive  people  to 
forsake  dearthful  country  and  seek  a  better  else- 
where capable  of  supporting  livelihood  ;  more 
especially  if  the  people  happen  to  be,  as  in  Air, 
naturally  nomadic.  I  think  it  may  be  accepted 
that  Air  in  the  present  age  is  a  land  of  dearth  not 
capable  of  supporting  a  great  many  people.  If 
it  was  a  rich  land,  and  war  was  the  great  scourge 
that  destroyed  the  people,  would  not  the  victors 
seize  the  country  and  settle  in  it  ?  Such  thoughts 
naturally  occur  to  me,  because  I  cannot  believe 
that  this  dreadfully  bare  country,  as  it  is  to-day, 
ever  offered  any  inducement  to  a  large  population 
to  live  in  it ;  while  if  food  for  many  people  was 
carried  from  Damergou,  Damagarim,  and  Kano 
in  the  south,  it  must  have  constituted  a  colossal 
and  unending  task  that  necessitated  the  upkeep  of 
great  herds  of  camels  and  an  abundant  growth 
of  forage :  viz.  grass,  ground  plants,  acacias, 
"  Abisgee,"  and  other  bushes. 

Therefore  the  solution  may  lie  in  geological 
change  or  climatic  change,  such  as  may  have 
altered  the  whole  aspect  of  the  land's  fertility. 
If  sands  have  swept  in  from  the  desert  seas  that 
bound  Air,  to  pile  up  gradually  at  the  base  of  the 


188  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   I 

range  through  centuries  of  time  and  smother 
forests  of  acacia  and  other  plant  life  which  may 
have  been  there,  then  the  land  has  suffered  a 
great  loss  (I  have  crossed  the  edge  of  the  eastern 
plain  below  Baguezan  mountains,  where  there  are 
still  considerable  numbers  of  acacias  close  in  to 
the  margin  where  mountain  rock  terminates) ; 
while  also  the  sand  that  is  blown  into  the  moun- 
tains from  the  desert  is,  during  Rains,  washed  into 
the  valleys  and  innumerable  river-beds,  causing, 
perhaps,  the  valleys  to  grow  in  depth  of  sand  and 
the  rivers,  for  lack  of  sufficient  gradient,  or  by 
reason  of  an  estuary  out  on  the  desert  that  may 
be  slowly  blocking  up,  to  gradually  fill  up  and 
choke,  where  once,  perhaps,  there  were  deep  rocky 
channels  which  held  pools  of  water  all  the  year 
round. 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  or  also,  climatic  con- 
ditions have  changed,  and  much  less  rain  falls 
now  than  in  former  years — natives  declare  some 
years  in  the  present  are  practically  rainless — ^the 
difference  in  the  fertility  of  the  country  would  be 
tremendous,  for  Air,  with  its  countless  river- 
courses,  under  conditions  of  bountiful  lasting 
rainfall  would  be  rich  and  beautiful  indeed. 

12th  June. — ^Bad  weather  set  in  last  evening, 
beginning  with  rapidly  rising  gale ;  then  develop- 
ing to  thunderstorm  and  rain.  Heavy  rain  fell 
through  the  night,  and  we  slept  in  water-soaked 
blankets. 

We  left  Igouloulof  at  daybreak,  and  continued 
northward  to  Faodet.  During  the  morning  we 
passed  through  some  broad  valley  country,  where 
evergreen  "Abisgee"  bushes  were  fairly  numerous, 


COUNTRY  NEAR  FAODET  189 

in  locality  the  guide  called  "  Tchyerus  "  ;  and 
the  river  of  that  name,  draining  westwards 
(which  appears  to  be  a  local  name  for  a  section 
of  the  Zilalet  river,  which  is  an  arm  of  the  great 
Agoras),  was  forded,  as  it  was  in  flood  after  the 
rain  of  last  night.  Thereafter,  before  coming  to 
Agarageur,  we  passed  over  open  country  of  pale 
sand,  dotted  with  small  cone-shaped  hills,  which 
opened  up  in  wide  expanse  westward.  Agarageur 
mountain  was  passed  close  on  our  right,  and  the 
stone-built  village  of  Afis,  which  is  S.W.  of  the 
range,  the  tiny  dwellings,  strikingly  diminutive, 
tucked  in  at  the  great  mountain  base.  Agarageur 
mountain  (named  Tamgak  on  Courtier's  French 
map,  but  called  by  the  natives  Agarageur)  appears 
high  and  stately,  rising  in  rugged  slopes  from 
massive  boulder-strewn  base.  Altitude  at  foot  of 
Agarageur,  2,600  ft. 

Approaching  Faodet,  where  we  camped,  we 
travelled  among  rough  foothills,  with  the  large 
magnificent  range  of  the  same  name  on  the  east. 
The  village  of  Faodet  is  in  a  level  sand- basin,  which 
contains  some  "  Abisgee  "  and  acacia  trees  and 
an  old  deep  well,  which  is  in  bad  disrepair  and  long 
out  of  use.  The  deserted  stone  dwellings  lie  back 
among  the  foothills  in  a  pleasant  ravine.  The 
altitude  at  Faodet  is  2,900  ft. 

Not  long  before  reaching  Faodet,  a  fierce 
thunderstorm  burst,  and  we  were  suddenly  caught 
on  a  bare  hill-crest  by  onslaught  of  heavy  driving 
torrential  rain,  and  as  camels  will  not  face  such 
weather,  they  at  once  turned  their  backs  to  the 
biting  gale  and  slashing  rain,  and  huddled  to- 
gether in  little  groups  to  stand  motionless  with 


190  NORTHERN   AIR:    PART   I 

their  cowering,  unprotected  riders  on  their  backs, 
while  the  rain  beat  down  on  them.  It  was  a 
strange  sight — groups  drawn  together  for  protec- 
tion, patiently  waiting,  the  rain,  as  if  incensed, 
literally  hurling  itself  angrily  down  upon  us  in 
torrents,  while  the  ground  at  our  feet  grew  to  a 
flowing  stream  of  water,  and  camels  shifted  their 
feet  uneasily  as  the  wet  and  discomfort  and  cold 
increased.  But  in  the  end,  as  always  in  this 
country,  the  brief  mad  storm  ceased,  and  we  shook 
out  our  bedraggled  feathers,  so  to  speak,  and 
journeyed  on  our  way. 

We  had  barely  restarted  when  a  second  unex- 
pected incident  surprised  us  this  day  ;  and  this 
was  when  breasting  a  ridge  we  came  right  on 
top  of  three  men  ascending  from  the  other  side. 
Their  appearance  was  extraordinary  :  they  were 
clothed  solely  in  skins  of  wild  sheep  and  gazelle, 
and  their  whole  colour,  even  to  their  pale  light 
yellowish  faces,  was  a  remarkable  blend  with  the 
sand.  Had  we  not  surprised  them,  it  is  certain 
that  we  should  never  have  detected  them  hidden 
away  among  rocks  and  sand.  They  were 
absolutely  wild  men  of  the  mountains,  roaming 
those  uninhabited  ranges  at  will,  and  were  amazed 
and  visibly  frightened  when  finding  themselves 
completely  at  our  mercy  ;  which  fear  was  partly 
dispelled  when  they  were  told  I  had  no  wish  to 
make  captives  of  them  or  harm  them.  They  all 
carried  short  wooden-shafted  spears,  and  bundles 
of  skin  bags  containing  their  scant  belongings, 
slung  over  their  shoulders  on  a  short  stick  ;  one 
also  carried  a  small  child  perched  on  the  top 
of  his  shoulder  and  clinging  to  the  crown  of  his 


APPROACIII-N'-;    iri-.l'jjrAX. 


190] 


WILD   MEN  191 

head.  All  were  wearing  yashmaks,  which  veiled 
their  faces  in  the  usual  Tuareg  fashion.  When  it 
was  found  that  we  were  friendly,  two  women  were 
revealed  concealed  fearfully  among  the  rocks  near 
by,  and  with  them  were  four  small  naked  children 
— ^two  of  them  infants  in  arms.  Those  strange 
people  had  no  goats  and  no  grain,  and  were  living 
on  wild  meat,  which  they  trapped  with  snares, 
green  barely  ripe  dates,  and  edible  roots  and  leaves 
and  berries  of  worth  known  to  themselves.  They 
had  not  been  out  of  Tamgak  mountains  for  a  year, 
they  declared,  and  were  on  their  way  to  Igouloulof 
to  gather  "  Abisgee  "  berries,  now  ripening  in 
that  district.  I  gave  them  half  a  gazelle,  killed 
this  day,  and  sent  them  gratefully  on  their  way, 
letting  them  go,  knowing  they  might  never  be 
seen  again,  with  the  same  feelings  as  I  might 
liberate  snared  animals,  and  watch  them  bound 
away  into  the  wilderness,  their  dearly  loved 
freedom  regained. 

I  note  to-day  that  thus  far  no  mosquitoes, 
which  had  appeared  further  south  in  the  wake 
of  the  first  light  Rains,  have  been  seen  north  of 
Timia. 

Shot  three  Dorcas  Gazelles  to-day  to  augment 
our  food  supplies  ;  a  number  of  those  animals 
seen. 

Each  day  I  note  down  the  few  birds  which  I  see, 
and  remain  watchful  for  new  species  which  I  may 
not  have  already  collected  in  Air  ;  but  up  to  now 
have  found  nothing  of  that  kind. 

13^/i  June.  —Leaving  Faodet,  a  broad  view  of 
mountain  range  was  sighted  soon  after  daylight 
to  the  north  and  east,  and  the  slopes  and  outline 


192  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    I 

of  the  great  Tamgak  mountains,  in  the  north  of 
Air,  lay  before  us,  not  in  appearance  of  aston- 
ishing height  (map  alt.  west  side  of  range  5,569 
ft.),  but  very  rugged  and  of  massive  solidity,  for 
they  are  of  extensive  area.  But  before  the  Tamgak 
range  is  reached,  a  very  wide  valley  or  flat  sandy 
plain  is  crossed  which  lies  between  the  Faodet 
mountains  and  Tamgak  mountains.  At  this 
time  we  could  see  in  the  north  a  peculiar  blunt- 
pointed  isolated  tower  of  rock  projecting  above 
the  most  distant  mountains  in  sight  along  the 
Tamgak  range,  which  the  guide  at  once  declared 
denoted  the  position  of  Iferouan  ;  and  once  one 
has  seen  this  unique  rock  spire  from  the  south,  or 
anywhere,  one  could  never  mistake  the  locality  of 
Iferouan  in  the  whole  of  Air.  (It  transpired 
later  that  this  spire  is  nearer  to  Zeloufiet  than 
Iferouan,  for  we  swung  out  in  a  north-west  direc- 
tion from  the  mountains  at  Zeloufiet,  to  find 
Iferouan  in  a  wide  fertile  valley  at  a  considerable 
distance  from  Tamgak.)  Thus,  in  the  morning, 
we  sighted  a  landmark  of  our  destination,  which 
we  expected  to  reach  about  4  p.m. 

Crossing  the  flat  sandy  plain,  referred  to  above, 
the  village  of  Iberkom  was  found  right  in  under 
mountain  slopes  of  Tamgak,  in  a  valley  fertile  in 
open  bush  growth,  which  was  already  pleasantly 
green  from  the  fall  of  recent  rain.  There  were 
some  date  palms  at  Iberkom  and  a  few  stone  huts 
among  the  bare  rocks. 

Leaving  Iberkom,  we  followed  round  the 
western  base  of  Tamgak  range,  crossing  over  one  or 
two  bare  rocky  ridges,  but  generally  following  along 
the  narrow  level  bush-grown  sandy  valley  that 


COUNTRY  NEAR  TAMGAK      193 

circled  round  the  base  of  the  towering  grey  rocks. 
We  next  passed  a  small  village  named  Tanetmolet, 
deserted  like  all  others,  with  a  well  which  con- 
tained no  water.  Altitude,  2,400  ft.  Soon  after- 
wards Tintaghoda  was  passed :  a  picturesque 
widely  laid  out  village  on  a  gravel  ridge,  the 
stone  huts  of  which  were  more  elaborate  than  any 
seen  elsewhere,  having  roof  parapets  and  craftless 
ornament  in  some  cases,  while  all  buildings  were 
of  peculiar  colouring,  since  the  stones  were  laid  in 
a  brick-red  mortar.  (I  did  not  dismount  and  walk 
about  the  empty  village,  which  I  much  regretted 
afterwards,  when  I  learned,  from  the  exiled  Chief 
of  Iferouan,  that  this  place  contains  an  important 
mosque.  On  the  other  hand  I  had  been  told  that 
there  was  a  mosque  at  Iferouan,  and  could  find 
no  trace  of  it  there,  and  now  know  that  the  Tinta- 
ghoda mosque  is  the  one  of  the  territory.)  A 
deep  well  south  of  the  village  held  water  in  plenty, 
but  it  was  sour  and  stagnant  from  lying  long 
unused. 

The  bush-grown  valley  narrowed  after  we  had 
breasted  the  stony  rise  of  Tintaghoda,  then  opened 
out  again  before  Zeloufiet  is  reached  ;  another 
village  that  is  first  viewed  on  a  bare  stony  ridge, 
and  of  some  picturesqueness  and  variety  when 
entered,  except  that  it  is  sadly  desolate  like  all 
the  others.  There  is  a  fine  belt  of  date  palms  to 
the  west  of  the  huts,  and  many  old  garden-patches 
which  still  bear  the  marks  of  irrigation,  at  one 
time  laid  out  with  the  purpose  of  nursing  cultiva- 
tion. At  Zeloufiet  the  great  Tamgak  mountains 
have  died  down,  and  the  wide  flat  basin,  wherein 
is  the  village,  is  surrounded  by  ranges  of  low  black 


194  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    I 

hills  ;  while  the  strange  rock  spire,  which  we  had 
seen  from  afar  in  the  morning,  lies  due  east  of 
the  village.  Between  Zeloufiet  and  Iferouan  the 
shallow,  bankless  river  we  have  been  keeping  in 
touch  with  in  the  bush-grown  valley  along  the 
mountain  base  broadens  out  and  becomes  the 
extremely  wide  shallow  Igheser  river-bed,  which 
on  its  banks  carry  some  dum  palms  and  date 
palms,  besides  some  "  Abisgee  "  and  acacia  bush  ; 
while  the  small  villages  of  Afassat  and  Tassebet, 
which  each  contain  some  date  palms,  are  passed 
on  the  east  bank  of  the  river  before  Iferouan 
is  reached. 

Nearing  Iferouan,  the  goumiers  were  much  inter- 
ested in  the  tracks  of  a  single  camel  in  the  sand 
of  the  river-bed.  Expert  in  reading  the  minutest 
detail  of  any  individual  camel  track,  they  spent 
some  time  following  the  signs,  which  led  toward 
Iferouan,  and  conjecturing  among  themselves 
over  them.  They  were  not  very  fresh  tracks,  a 
week  or  ten  days  old,  but  the  natives  decided 
that  they  were  certainly  the  marks  of  a  camel 
from  the  north  ;  no  doubt  the  mount  of  a  scout 
from  some  Hogar  band  of  robbers  sent  to  spy  out 
the  land :  looking  at  the  dates  in  Iferouan  to 
judge,  perhaps,  when  they  would  be  ripe,  so  that 
they  might,  in  season,  be  plundered  or  descent  be 
planned  upon  the  people  who  might  be  sent  from 
Timia  or  Agades  to  gather  them — a  disaster  which 
actually  occurred  last  year.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  outlaw  might  have  gone  into  Iferouan  for 
water,  and  thereafter  proceeded  south  to  spy 
about  the  borders  of  inhabited  districts  to  seek  out 
the  grazing-places  of  camels,  with  a  view  to  his 


IN  IFEROUAN  195 

band  swooping  in  on  them  and  bearing  them  off ; 
as  so  often  happens  in  Air  in  the  present  day. 

It  was  a  weary  band  of  men,  and  camels,  that 
off-loaded  and  camped  in  Iferouan,  for  we  had 
travelled  hard  for  the  last  few  days  over  country 
that  held  many  drawbacks  to  comfortable  travel. 

The  dwellings  of  Iferouan  are  on  the  west  bank 
of  the  Igheser  river,  among,  and  bordering,  an 
extensive  date-palm  and  dum-palm  belt,  where 
many  wells  are  sunk  which  once  served  the  wants 
of  natives  and  irrigated  the  garden  patches,  that 
had  evidently  been  cultivated  on  every  available 
piece  of  ground  within  the  palm  grove.  (Later 
the  exiled  Chief  of  Iferouan,  by  name  Obidelkilli, 
informed  me  that  it  was  principally  wheat  which 
was  grown  there  in  the  past,  a  grain  which  in  all 
probability  came  into  the  country  from  northern 
Africa.)  The  huts  in  the  palm  grove  are  of  cane 
framework  and  grass  thatched,  and  are  chiefly  in  a 
state  of  ruin,  while  outside  the  grove,  on  the 
margin  of  stony  ground  to  the  west,  there  are  both 
grass  huts  and  stone  huts.  Also,  on  an  island, 
quite  apart  from  the  village,  out  in  the  centre 
of  the  wide  stream-bed,  there  is  a  small  house 
of  European  aspect,  apparently  a  small  post  or 
place  of  accommodation  for  resident  or  visiting 
French  officer  at  one  time. 

From  Iferouan  one  views  the  rugged  western 
slopes  of  the  great  Tamgak  range  out  to  the 
northern  extreme,  and  low  hills  beyond  that  tail 
away  in  the  distance  — the  last  of  the  hills  of  Air, 
broken  hills  that  appear  to  grow  more  diminu- 
tive and  scattered  as  they  recede  beyond  the  care 
of  the  wild  mountain  ranges  of  Air.  ...  I  had 


196  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    I 

reached  my  goal,  the  north  of  Air,  a  goal  which 
from  the  time  I  left  England  to  this  memorable 
day  had  never  been  promised  with  any  measure 
of  certainty ;  and  perhaps  I  may  be  forgiven 
if  at  this  hour  I  was  filled  with  gladness. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  NORTHERN  REGIONS  OF  AIR  I    PART  II 

I  REMAINED  the  ncxt  day  in  Iferouan  collecting 
a  few  specimens  of  doves,  inhabiting  the  palm 
trees,  which  proved  to  be  Streptopelia  turtur 
hoggarUy  a  rare  and  beautiful  soft-coloured  richly 
mottled  dove  which  I  found  in  no  other  locality  in 
Air.  This  was  the  first  and  only  good  find  during 
my  northern  journey,  throughout  which  birds 
remained  remarkably  scarce.  I  think,  after  all, 
birds  like  the  society  of  mankind ;  at  any  rate, 
desolate,  man-forsaken  northern  Air  held  very  few 
birds  indeed  in  comparison  with  inhabited  dis- 
tricts in  the  south.  Mankind  cultivate  seed 
crops,  keep  herds  of  cattle,  throw  out  debris,  live 
where  water  is  to  be  found,  and  have  a  score  or 
more  habits,  each  of  which  unconsciously,  in  some 
way,  is  of  benefit  to  one  or  other  of  the  feathered 
tribe. 

I  did  not  intend  to  return  to  Timia  by  the  route 
I  had  come,  but  to  journey  south-west  to  Aguellal, 
the  most  western  mountain  range  in  Air  of  any 
importance,  and  thence  cut  back  eastward  by  way 
of  the  ancient  town  of  Assode. 

Before  setting  out,  an  unexpected  difficulty 
cropped  up  in  that,  wilfully  or  truthfully,  Homa, 
the   native   who   had   been   guide   to   Iferouan, 

197 


198  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    II 

declared  that  he  did  not  know  the  way  to  Aguellal. 
I  had  made  my  plans  quite  clear  before  leaving 
Timia,  and  was  considerably  annoyed  to  find  that 
I  had  been  misled  as  to  the  ability  of  the  guide. 
I  called  the  goumiers,  and  asked  each  one  if  he  knew 
the  country,  but  received  a  negative  reply  from 
all,  which,  so  far  as  I  could  judge,  was  true, 
although  by  this  time  I  knew  something  of  Tuareg 
shortcomings,  and  was  aware  that  the  whole  busi- 
ness might  be  a  ruse  to  put  me  off  returning  by  a 
circuitous  and  longer  route.  In  any  case,  I 
nipped  any  indecision,  which  they  may  have 
wished  to  encourage,  in  the  bud,  by  declaring 
emphatically  that  I  had  a  good  Takarda  (map), 
and  would  lead  the  way  to  Aguellal,  at  the  same 
time  knowing  the  men  would  have  to  accompany 
me  unless  they  wished  to  greatly  displease  their 
officer  at  Agades. 

My  map  showed  a  track  from  Iferouan  to 
Aguellal,  and  the  evening  before  starting  I  sent 
the  chief  goumier  and  Homa  out  to  search  for  it 
west  of  the  village.  They  came  back  at  dark  with 
the  encouraging  news  that  they  had  found  a  track 
out  on  the  stony  plain  leading  westward. 

Hence  at  daybreak  on  15th  June  we  set  out 
from  Iferouan  in  the  direction  of  Aguellal.  The 
track  soon  proved  to  be  very  vague,  so  that  I  had 
to  refer  frequently  to  map  and  compass  before 
Aguellal  mountain  range  loomed  in  sight,  a  pro- 
cedure which  astonished  and  impressed  the 
natives,  who  had  for  days  past  been  vastly  in- 
terested in  the  magic  sheet  of  paper  which  told  me 
so  much  about  a  land  which  they  were  aware  I  had 
never  seen  before.     From  time  to  time  we  picked 


DOUBT  OF  DIRECTION  199 

up  the  old  track,  usually  on  stony  ground  where 
sand  had  not  drifted,  and  thus  reassured  we  kept 
on  a  true  course. 

The  country  between  Iferouan  and  Aguellal  is 
in  general  aspect  plain-like  and  expansive  and 
very  barren.  Low  rugged  hills  lie  west  and  south 
of  Iferouan,  in  country  of  alternating  stretches  of 
light  gravel  and  sand  in  slight  hollows  and  valleys, 
and  darker  gravel  and  rock  on  the  rounded  ridges 
and  higher  lands.  When  more  than  midway  on 
our  journey,  we  crossed  an  extensive  sandy  plain 
on  its  western  margin,  and  there  the  old  track  was 
completely  obliterated  by  weather  and  drifting 
sand,  and  I  noticed  the  leading  camel-man  was 
following,  at  times,  the  small  particles  of  bleached 
camel-litter  of  animals  that  had  long  ago  passed 
this  way — in  the  end,  even  those  slight  signs,  that 
would  escape  unpractised  eyes,  were  lost. 

No  trees  were  seen  to-day,  except  an  occasional 
low  weed-like,  ill-nourished  bush  and  a  few  scat- 
tered acacais  at  our  night  camp,  which  was  chosen 
in  the  Aniogaran  valley  bed  (altitude,  2,200  ft.), 
at  which  time  we  were  in  full  view  of  the  northern 
slopes  of  rugged  Aguellal. 

Dr.  Barth,  on  entering  the  Air  mountains  from 
the  north  in  1850,  described  the  approach  to 
Aguellal  as  "  a  picturesque  wilderness,"  where 
"  majestic  mountains  and  detached  peaks  towered 
over  the  landscape." 

Unlike  other  localities  throughout  to-day's 
journey,  there  was  no  sign  of  recent  rainfall,  and 
the  land  lay  terribly  parched,  and  altogether  the 
most  drear  and  barren  area  we  had  entered  since 
leaving  Timia. 


200  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART    II 

The  undulating  fairly  level  type  of  country  was 
of  the  type  favoured  by  Dorcas  Gazelles,  and  a 
number  of  them  were  seen  to-day,  and  an  animal 
shot  for  food. 

I  am  now  living  principally  on  buck-meat  and 
dried  dates  bought  in  Timia,  for  my  European 
stores,  which  I  have  had  to  draw  on  heavily  ever 
since  leaving  the  inhabited  regions  of  Damergou, 
are  almost  finished.  The  articles  I  miss  most  of 
all,  and  which  ran  out  about  a  month  ago,  are 
sugar  and  tobacco  ;  especially  the  latter,  which 
can  be  a  wonderful  solace  when  the  palate 
grows  listless  on  a  constant  diet  of  freshly  killed 
meat. 

Resuming  the  journey  on  the  following  day,  we 
changed  our  course  westward  and  then  southward, 
to  swing  round  the  north-west  spur  of  the  Aguellal 
range,  over  very  rough  foot-hills,  through  which  an 
old  mountain  track  led  us  in  toward  Aguellal 
village,  which  lay  hidden  round  the  corner  of  the 
spur,  until  we  came  suddenly  in  sight  of  it  at  close 
range. 

We  camped  in  Aguellal  two  hours  after  setting 
out.  Aguellal  village  (altitude,  2,100  ft.)  is  be- 
neath the  western  slope  of  the  strange  dark  moun- 
tains of  the  same  name — magnificent  ranges  in 
rugged  contour,  and  of  considerable  height— 
while  westward  from  the  deserted  village,  or 
rather,  villages,  for  there  are  four  separate  groups 
of  dwellings  in  different  localities,  stretches  a 
wide  sandy  valley,  with  green  banks  of  low  bush 
comprised  chiefly  of  "  Abisgee "  and  acacia. 
There  are  no  date  palms  at  Aguellal  and  no  old 
signs  of  grain  cultivation  ;   indeed,  I  doubt  if  the 


AGUELLAL  201 

barren  stony  ground  would  permit  of  cultivation. 
So  that  natives  in  the  past  apparently  gave  their 
attention  entirely  to  maintaining  herds  of  goats  and 
camels,  though,  in  general,  Aguellal  mountain  has 
little  attractive  fertility  round  its  base,  and  is  sur- 
rounded by  country  of  more  barren  appearance 
than  the  more  central  ranges,^  which  have  a 
certain  fertility  in  some  of  the  valleys  in  their 
immediate  surroundings. 

The  deserted  huts  in  the  villages  are  stone-built 
and  of  reddish  colour,  and  many  contained  relics 
of  native  furniture  and  utensils,  such  as  wooden 
stools,  mortar  bowls,  grass  mats,  grass-made 
baskets  and  dishes,  and  earthenware  water -jars. 
In  a  number  of  dwellings  jars  were  found  built  into 
the  inside  walls,  and  the  goumiers  informed  me 
that  those  were  customarily  used  by  natives  as 
hiding-places  for  money. 

There  is  a  deep  well  at  Aguellal  in  the  centre  of 
the  principal  village. 

Accompanied  by  Atagoom  and  Saidi,  I  left 
camp  not  long  after  midday,  and  proceeded  to 
climb  into  Aguellal  mountains,  an  undertaking 
which  proved  to  be  a  strenuous  one,  and  we  did 
not  get  back  to  camp  until  after  dark.  Mountain 
climbing  in  intense  heat  is  not  mountain  climbing 
under  ideal  conditions,  and  we  put  in  an  afternoon 
of  extreme  exertion,  for  Aguellal  slopes  are  very 
steep,  almost  cliff -like  in  their  upper  reaches,  and 
of  a  rugged  composition  which  rendered  them 
quite  impassable  in  places.     We  succeeded,  before 

^  The  mountains  of  Baguezan,  Timia,  Agalak,  Goundai,  Agara- 
geur,  Faodet,  and  Tamgak  may  be  said  to  form  almost  one  continu- 
ous range,  whereas  Aguellal  is  a  detached  moimtain  range. 
15 


^2  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

receding  daylight  warned  us  to  begin  descent,  in 
climbing  to  a  summit  which  registered  3,100  ft., 
1,000  ft.  above  Aguellal  village,  which  is  a  very 
considerable  distance  away  from  the  actual 
mountain  base.  Other  peaks  were,  at  that 
altitude,  above  us  north  and  south-west,  which 
appeared  almost  inaccessible  without  the  aid  of 
ropes,  and  I  judged  they  might  have  additional 
height  of  600  to  800  ft.  (On  one  map  which  I 
possess  there  is  an  altitude  reading  on  the  east  side 
of  the  range  of  3,609  ft.) 

Fresh  tracks  of  wild  sheep  were  numerous  in  the 
mountain. 

17th  June, — ^Left  Aguellal  at  daybreak,  travel- 
ling first  south-west  to  avoid  the  southern  spur  of 
Aguellal,  and  thereafter  swinging  round  into  the 
south-east  with  the  intention  of  cutting  in  to  the 
broad  Agoras  valley,  and  thence  continuing  up  the 
river  course  to  Assode.  The  journey  to-day  was 
the  hardest  performed  since  leaving  Timia,  being 
throughout  over  rocky,  irregular  lowland,  which 
offered  bad  foothold  for  the  camels  and  entailed 
much  variance  of  direction  to  avoid  impassable 
rocks  and  gully  channels.  Throughout  the  day 
there  were  many  individual  hills  in  the  landscape. 
About  mid- journey  a  long  time  was  spent  in 
making  our  way  through  the  strange  pass  that 
is  between  the  large  detached  hills  of  Matalgha 
and  Marasset — a  much  greater  time  and  distance 
than  the  map  would  lead  one  to  expect. 

Marasset  is  prominent,  and  can  be  identified  a 
long  way  off.  It  has  one  peak  in  particular, 
which  rises  high  above  all  else  and  terminates  in 
twin  cone-shaped  towers. 


IN    AQUKLLAL    MOUNTAIN;}    AT    3,100    FEET. 


^»^M*£ 


Ir- 


W  t.    ilSU    A    1'UiaiUl.r-    I'UUL    Ul-     WATEK    S.K.    Vl     AG L  LLl^iL,    AiH. 


202] 


SOUTH  OF  AGUELLAL  203 

Beyond  Marasset  we  found  a  pool  of  fresh  rain- 
water, which  brought  forth  a  general  exclamation 
of  pleasure,  while  halt  was  made  to  slack  our  imme- 
diate thirst  and  fill  all  our  water-skins.  Through- 
out this  journey  in  northern  Air  it  has  been, 
excepting  on  one  other  occasion,  our  lot  to  subsist 
on  the  stagnant,  foul-tasted  waters  obtained  from 
old  decayed  village  wells  which  have  not  been  in 
use  for  some  years. 

We  camped  about  4  p.m.  at  a  small  village 
named  Ebazouera,  near  to  the  edge  of  the  ex- 
pansive Agoras  valley  ;  a  tiny  village  containing 
a  few  ruins  and  three  standing  stone  huts.  There 
was  no  well.     Altitude,  2,300  ft. 

ISth  June. — About  two  hours  after  setting  out 
in  the  early  morning  we  passed  out  of  rocky  land 
and  intersected  the  Agoras  river,  which  was  then 
followed  upstream  until  Assode  was  reached 
about  2  p.m.  The  river-bed  of  sand  is  very  wide, 
with  shallow  banks  almost  barren  of  trees.  It  was 
necessary  for  me  to  act  as  guide,  as  on  the  previous 
days  ;  moreover,  the  natives  now  had  implicit 
faith  in  my  magic  Takarda  (map).  One  might 
think  that  doubt  should  not  arise  travelling  in  a 
wide  river-bed,  nevertheless  it  does  ;  broad  chan- 
nels open  up  in  the  shores,  outlets  of  other  streams 
join  into  the  Agoras,  and  more  than  once  the  ques- 
tion arises  :  which  shall  be  followed  of  two  broad 
ways  ? — which  seem,  at  their  junction,  to  both 
lead  much  in  the  same  direction.  However, 
when  nearing  Assode,  one  or  two  of  the  goumiers, 
and  the  guide  Homa,  began  to  find  landmarks 
with  which  they  were  familiar,  and  I  soon  learned 
that  I  need  have  no  further  concern  as  to  our 


204  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

whereabouts,  as  the  way  back  to  Timia  was  hence- 
forth known  to  the  natives. 

I  may  say  that  the  French  map  of  Air,  resultant 
from  the  Cortier  Geographical  Mission,  which  had 
been  kindly  given  to  me  at  Agades,  proved  of  the 
utmost  service  to  me  throughout  my  travels  in 
Air,  and  is  an  excellent  and  accurate  map  if  one 
follows  it  on  broadly  conceived  lines.  But  one 
must  form  conception  of  proportion  very  ex- 
pansively, for  the  scale  (and,  perhaps,  the  extent 
of  geographical  data)  does  not  permit  the  inclusion 
of  the  abundant  detail  which  this  rugged  moun- 
tain-land possesses.  For  instance,  the  chief 
mountain  ranges  and  a  great  many  hills  and 
rivers  are  indicated,  but  there  are  hundreds,  yea, 
perhaps,  thousands,  of  individual  hills  and  many 
streams  which  are  not  included  on  the  map. 

The  village  or  town  of  Assode  (altitude,  2,475 
ft.)  is  the  largest  I  came  across  in  Air  north  of 
Agades.  It  is  strangely  situated  in  a  small  stony 
plateau-basin,  behind  high  rocky  banks  on  the 
north  side  of  the  Agoras  river,  in  country  more 
hilly  than  that  which  borders  the  river  further 
west.  The  basin,  wherein  lies  the  village,  is  com- 
pletely surrounded  with  natural  ramparts  of  small 
hills,  and  therefore  presents  the  appearance  of  a 
place  capable  of  strong  defence  in  time  of 
war.  The  space  within  the  hills  is  in  places 
crowded  with  stone  huts,  while,  where  huts  do  not 
now  stand,  the  area  is  a  rubbish  heap  of  ruins 
where  dwellings  have  fallen,  and  undoubtedly 
Assode  at  one  time  was  a  place  of  considerable 
importance. 

Among  the  ruins  I  found  the  ancient  mosque 


ANCIENT  ASSODE  205 

of  Assode,  the  existence  of  which  is  known  to  every 
Tuareg  in  Air,  and  no  doubt  it  holds  a  prominent 
place  in  Mohammedan  religious  history.  The 
mosque  stands,  without  any  notable  prominence, 
except  in  ground  area,  on  the  crown  of  a  rising  knoll 
in  the  eastern  quarter  of  the  village,  with  the  front 
and  tower  ruins  facing  the  north-west ;  possibly 
so  that  the  main  body  of  the  prayer  court  and 
devotion  cells  face  eastward  toward  the  rising 
sun.  The  mosque  is  altogether  in  a  sad  state  of 
ruin  :  roofs  in  places  collapsed,  lintels  and  door 
jambs  fallen,  and  the  tower  (apparently  never 
built  to  any  great  height)  but  a  pile  of  fallen 
stones.  Roughly,  the  mosque  has  a  ground  area 
of  135  ft.  length  and  55  ft.  breadth,  which  longi- 
tudinally is  divided  into  two  equal  sections  :  an 
indoor  place  of  prayer  and  an  outdoor  place  of 
prayer.  The  indoor  section,  which  is  the  eastern 
half,  is  made  up  of  five  long  dark  passage-like 
aisles,  varying  from  5  ft.  to  6  ft.  wide,  with  stone 
walls,  about  2  ft.  thick,  which  are  honeycombed 
with  low  door  openings  4  ft.  high,  while  the  ceilings 
are  only  7  ft.  to  8  ft.  high,  constructed  with 
timbers  carrying  an  earth  and  gravel  roof.  The 
outdoor  section  is  simply  an  open  courtyard, 
surrounded  by  a  stone  wall  and  levelled  off  a  few 
steps  above  the  ground  level  outside.  On  the 
west  of  this  there  is  a  wing,  21  ft.  by  78  ft.,  on  a 
lower  level  containing  a  double  row  of  aisles  : 
possibly  a  special  department  for  the  devotions 
of  priests.  I  found  in  the  aisles  great  piles  of 
Mohammedan  literature,  most  beautifully  penned, 
and  regretted  I  could  not  bear  it  away  with  me  so 
that  it  might  be  searched  for  ancient  records 


206  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

relating  to  the  history  of  the  land.  (Later  I 
informed  the  French  authorities  of  this  litera- 
ture, and  it  is  possible  that  an  effort  will  be 
made  to  have  it  brought  back  and  preserved  and 
thoroughly  examined.) 

There  are  monastic  quarters  well  apart  from  the 
mosque  and  farther  east,  and  they  still  have  out- 
line which  shows  that  they  were  more  extensive 
than  any  of  the  hut  dwellings  at  present  standing, 
which  are  small,  square,  single-room  affairs. 

All  the  ancient  huts  of  the  age  of  the  mosque 
are  completely  in  ruins  and  but  piles  of  building 
stones,  so  that  one  cannot  judge  the  shape  which 
they  possessed,  but  it  is  highly  probable  that 
they  were  of  the  same  style  as  those  at  present 
standing. 

There  are  no  date  palms  at  Assode,  but 
numerous  signs  that  the  inhabitants  kept  goats 
and  camels. 

19th  June. — We  left  Assode  an  hour  and  a  half 
before  daylight,  and,  on  account  of  the  chapter 
of  incidents  about  to  be  related,  travelled  without 
halt  till  5  p.m. 

Leaving  Assode,  we  headed  south-east  up  the 
Agoras  river,  until  we  intersected  our  outward 
route  to  Iferouan  at  the  point  where  we  had 
camped  ten  days  before  at  the  junction  of  the 
Teguednu  and  Asselar  rivers,  at  which  time  the 
large  conspicuous  mountain  named  Goundai, 
which  I  remarked  on  when  outward  bound,  was 
again  in  view. 

It  was  at  this  point  that  tremendous  excite- 
ment was  suddenly  aroused  among  the  goumiers  in 
finding  fresh  tracks  of  camels  in  the  sand  of  the 


ROBBERS  207 

river-bed  of  robbers,  who,  coming  from  the  north- 
east, had  cut  into  our  outward  tracks  and  had 
gone  southward  following  them. 

High  exclamations  and  intense  excitement  was 
rife  among  the  goumiers  for  some  minutes,  while 
rifles  were  unslung  and  locks  looked  to  and 
magazines  fully  charged,  the  while  the  tracks  in 
the  sand  were  being  examined  and  read.  There 
were,  the  goumiers  decided,  twelve  camels,  and 
their  riders  were  undoubtedly  robbers,  but  they 
were  in  considerable  doubt  as  to  whether  they  had 
come  from  Tibesti  or  the  Ahaggar  mountains,  and 
such  signs  as  they  picked  up — ^an  end  of  cord,  a 
small  piece  of  cotton  garb,  and  a  few  dried  dates  ; 
articles  all  eagerly  examined — ^failed  to  prove 
conclusively  whether  the  band  were  Tebu  or 
Hogar  natives. 

I  had  intended  to  camp  at  Tiggeur  for  the  day, 
but  now  decided  to  rapidly  follow  the  tracks  of 
the  robbers  in  the  hope  of  arriving  in  time  to  aid 
the  natives  of  Timia,  if  aid  were  needed.  So  we 
hurried  on,  following  the  course  of  a  deep  ravine  ; 
and  all  the  time  the  tracks  in  the  sand  were  being 
keenly  read  by  the  excited  goumiers.  In  time, 
some  miles  from  Timia,  we  came  to  where  the 
robbers  had  happened  on  a  herd  of  goats  tended 
by  a  woman.  Here  it  was  noted  in  the  sand  that 
they  had  spurred  their  camels  to  rush  forward  so 
that  they  might  catch  and  seize  the  woman,  and 
signs  of  struggle  were  found  below  an  acacia  tree, 
where  they  had  effected  her  capture.  Thereafter 
they  had  driven  the  goats  before  them  along  the 
ravine  until  a  side-branch  was  reached,  and  we 
traced  where  one  man  had  turned  up  this  on  foot 


208  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

and  gone  off  eastward  with  the  captured  herd, 
while  the  main  band  had  continued  in  towards 
Timia,  led  by  the  woman  they  had  taken  prisoner, 
and  whose  sandal-prints  could  be  traced  in  the 
sand.  (It  was  presumed  that  the  goats  would  be 
driven  to  some  rendezvous  where  the  band  would 
meet  later  ;  but  this  proved  wrong  conjecture,  for 
it  was  afterwards  found  that  they  had  abandoned 
the  goats.)  Again,  farther  on,  we  traced  in  the 
sand  where  all  the  robbers  had  dismounted  and 
advanced  stealthily  to  where  some  donkeys  were 
grazing ;  no  doubt  with  the  purpose  of  catching 
anyone  who  might  be  in  attendance  so  that  he  or 
she  would  not  escape  to  give  the  alarm  in  Timia. 
But  there  was  no  sign  of  an  additional  prisoner 
having  been  taken,  and  the  robbers  had  continued 
onward,  taking  the  donkeys  with  them  for  a  short 
distance,  and  then  had  turned  them  aside  up  a 
quiet  guUey  and  left  them  there. 

At  last,  having  left  the  ravine  to  ascend  over  a 
stony  stretch  of  land  and  then  descend  into  Timia 
valley,  we  came  upon  the  place — ^just  before  the 
river  bends  toward  the  village,  and  in  shelter  of  a 
jutting  hill-spur — ^where,  in  the  dusk,  the  robbers 
had  made  camp.  They  had  lain  beside  their 
camels  and  reposed,  and  had  apparently  partaken 
of  little  food  beyond  dried  dates,  as  they  had  not 
dared  to  light  fires.  From  this  camping-place, 
where  they  waited  the  advent  of  dawn,  we  traced 
the  naked  footprints  of  two  of  the  robbers  who, 
in  the  dark,  had  crept  stealthily  in  to  Timia  to 
reconnoitre. 

In  a  few  minutes  more  we  were  on  the  out- 
skirts of  Timia,  which  seemed  strangely  deserted 


TIMIA  ATTACKED  209 

and  silent.  However,  we  soon  espied  a  single 
armed  man  dodging  about  in  a  date  grove,  and 
hailed  him  that  we  were  friends,  whereupon  he 
and  two  others  came  out  to  join  us,  and  soon  the 
hurried  tale  of  the  adventures  of  the  day  was 
being  poured  into  the  ears  of  my  excited  goumiers. 
To  begin  with  :  we  were  too  late  !  Timia  had 
been  attacked  and  entered,  and  the  robbers  had 
left,  heading  south,  about  four  hours  ago.  The 
disjointed  story  of  the  natives  pieced  together 
something  in  this  form  :  The  robbers  had  at- 
tacked Timia  at  dawn  to-day,  trying  to  terrorise 
the  place.  But  the  inhabitants  had  had  warning 
the  evening  before,  brought  in  by  a  woman,  who 
had  been  with  the  donkeys,  which  the  robbers  had 
come  across,  and  who  had  fled  undetected  some 
little  time  before  the  bandits  had  reached  the 
animals.  So  that  the  Timia  natives  (who  were 
unfortunately  without  the  leadership  of  their 
chief  Fougda  :  reputed  to  be  an  able  man  in 
circumstances  of  danger)  were  already  secreted 
among  the  rocks  in  the  gorge  at  dawn  awaiting 
the  robbers.  Also  they  had  wisely  sent  a  man  to 
where  their  camels  were  grazing  south-west  of 
Timia,  with  instructions  that  they  were  to  be 
driven  with  all  haste  on  to  the  Baguezan  plateau 
(an  order  which  events  proved  was  not  explicitly 
obeyed).  Therefore,  when  the  robbers  advanced, 
they  found  the  natives  waiting  for  them,  and, 
apparently,  regular  guerilla  warfare  ensued  which 
lasted  for  some  hours.  It  would  appear  that  the 
Timia  natives  were  foolish,  and  blazed  off  their 
ammunition  at  ineffective  range  ;  for,  apparently, 
they  did  not  hit  a  single  robber,  while  they  com- 


210  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

pletely  exhausted  their  scant  supplies  of  ammu- 
nition. On  the  other  hand  the  robbers  were  very 
daring  and  wily  in  attack  and  better  marksmen, 
also  they  had  modern  rifles  and  plenty  of  ammu- 
nition (later  I  picked  up  a  full  clasp — 6  rounds — 
of  '303  Italian  ammunition  and  some  empty  cases 
of  Turkish  ammunition  of  about  '44  calibre). 

About  noon  the  village  was  completely  at  the 
mercy  of  the  robbers,  and  they  entered  where  they 
willed.  But,  be  it  said  to  their  credit,  they  made 
no  attempt  to  wreak  vengeance  on  the  people  or 
their  dwellings,  and  they  carried  off  neither  quan- 
tities of  food  nor  goats  nor  women.  Their  sole 
purpose  was  to  steal  camels,  and  as  none  were  in 
the  village  or  near  by,  they  forthwith  forced  the 
old  headman,  whom  they  had  captured,  to  guide 
them  out  of  the  village  and  take  them  to  where 
the  camels  were  to  be  found. 

This  was  as  far  as  their  story  went.  At  the 
time  we  arrived  in  Timia  the  robbers  were  some- 
where to  the  south,  searching  for  the  camels 
belonging  to  the  natives. 

I  was  in  a  quandary,  for  I  felt  sure  the  robbers 
could  yet  be  caught,  yet  if  I  led  the  goumiers 
against  the  robbers  without  real  personal  cause 
and  failed  to  rout  them,  or  suffered  heavy 
casualties,  I  might  be  asked  awkward  questions 
by  the  French  authorities  and  be  asked  to  leave 
the  country  ;  which  would  be  disastrous  to  the 
interests  of  the  expedition.  Therefore,  after  due 
consideration  of  my  position  as  a  civilian  in  a 
foreign  land,  which  barred  me  from  pursuing  the 
enemy  with  no  other  purpose  than  to  force  a 
fight,  I  called  the  chief  goumier  and  Atagoom, 


ESCORT  FOLLOW  ROBBERS  211 

and  told  them  that  I  was  certain  that  if  their 
captain  at  Agades  knew  they  were  close  to  robbers, 
he  would  expect  them  to  follow  them  up,  while, 
if  they  did  not,  he  would  be  sure  to  be  vastly  dis- 
pleased —this  was,  I  felt,  as  far  as  I  could  go  in 
the  matter.  And  my  reasoning  bore  fruit,  for  the 
goumiers  agreed  to  follow  the  robbers,  reinforced 
by  five  armed  natives  of  Timia,  and  though  both 
men  and  beasts  were  terribly  tired,  having 
travelled  since  4.30  in  the  morning,  they  set 
out  to  follow  the  tracks  of  the  robbers  just  as 
it  was  growing  dusk. 

As  soon  as  I  had  got  them  away,  I  sent  the  half- 
dozen  unarmed  men  remaining  in  Timia  to  look 
for  wounded,  and  before  retiring  to  rest  dressed, 
as  best  I  could,  with  warm  water  and  bandages, 
three  bad  cases  which  they  brought  in  :  one  of 
whom  I  did  not  expect  to  live. 

The  old  headman  wearily  returned  to  Timia  at 
night,  leaning  heavily  on  his  staff  and  barely 
able  to  walk,  for,  besides  his  trying  experiences  in 
the  hands  of  the  robbers,  he  was  slightly  wounded 
in  the  chin  and  right  knee.  The  robbers  had 
released  him  when  they  had  sighted  the  camels 
they  sought.  He  said  the  robbers  were  Hogar,  and 
the  band  comprised  twelve  camels  (as  the  goumiers 
had  accurately  read  from  the  mingled  tracks  in 
the  sand),  fourteen  men,  and  thirteen  rifles. 
(Those  robbers  sometimes  mount  two  men  on 
one  camel.) 

Timia,  20th  June. — Spent  an  uneventful  night 
alone  :   no  further  disturbance. 

This  morning  a  few  natives  begin  to  appear 
out  of  hiding  and  come  to  my  camping-place  to 


212  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

express  their  gladness  that  I  have  returned  to 
protect  them.  (For  they  have  great  faith  in  the 
powers  of  any  white  man.)  They  are  still  in  a 
state  of  panic,  and  most  of  the  women  and  children 
remain  hidden  among  the  rocks  in  the  mountain 
sides  afraid  to  come  in,  especially  as  they  fear  a 
second  band  which  the  robbers  declared  would 
follow  them  in  a  day  or  two  ;  a  declaration  which 
proved  without  truth,  and  circulated  by  the 
robbers  solely  to  intimidate  the  populace  and 
prevent  the  men  of  Timia  from  leaving  the 
neighbourhood  to  follow  them.  For  my  own 
part  I  remain  camped  in  the  open  by  the  edge 
of  the  dry  river-bed,  in  spite  of  remonstrance 
from  the  old  headman,  who  wanted  me  also  to 
hide  in  the  hills  ;  and  before  the  end  of  the  day 
my  apparent  indifference  had  helped  to  restore 
native  confidence. 

During  the  day  five  more  wounded  were  brought 
in  to  be  attended  to,  in  addition  to  the  three  placed 
in  my  charge  last  evening  :  one  of  whom  had  died 
during  the  night. 

The  goumiers  returned  late  to-night,  reporting 
they  had  not  caught  up  the  robbers,  who  had 
succeeded  in  capturing  (about  midway  between 
Timia  and  Baguezan  plateau)  and  driving  off 
thirty- two  camels.  The  native  guarding  the 
camels,  who  had  unfortunately  dallied  in  executing 
the  order  to  drive  the  camels  rapidly  away  into 
Baguezan,  had  been  caught  by  the  robbers  and 
disrobed  of  everything  he  possessed  except  a 
leather  loincloth. 

21st  June. — I  now  proposed  to  remain  and 
collect  at  Timia  for  some  time ;    therefore,  as 


ROBBERS  CAPTURE  CAMELS  213 

arranged,  I  sent  off  news  to  Agades  of  my  safe 
return  from  northern  Air,  at  the  same  time  return- 
ing all  the  goumiers,  excepting  the  two  worthies 
Atagoom  and  Saidi. 

Two  of  my  patients  passed  away  overnight, 
both  with  very  bad  internal  wounds.  Three 
have  now  succumbed  to  wounds  out  of  the  eight 
brought  in.  The  remainder  are  all  likely  to 
recover. 

22nd  June. — Quiet  day  skinning,  and  Timia 
now  rapidly  returning  to  a  normal  state.  This 
morning  witnessed  the  arrival  of  many  of  the 
fugitive  population  from  hiding  in  the  moun- 
tains. They  came  in  twos  or  threes  and  small 
parties  :  some  men,  with  staves  and  bundles  on 
their  shoulders  ;  but  mostly  women,  liberally  clad, 
for  warmth  at  night,  in  cotton  clothing,  and 
carrying  roUed-up  grass  mats  upon  which  they  had 
slept  among  the  rocks.  Some  of  the  women  also 
drove  in  goats  before  them. 

Further  information  with  regard  to  the  robbers 
was  revealed  to  me  to-day  by  the  old  headman, 
who  is  now  recovering  from  his  wounds.  It 
appears  that  on  the  way  to  Timia  the  robbers 
came  upon  and  caught  one  of  the  "  wild " 
women  from  Tamgak  mountain  which  we  had 
run  across  north  of  Egouloulof,  and  had  ques- 
tioned her  closely  as  to  whom  it  was  who  had 
passed  northward  and  left  behind  the  many  camel 
tracks.  She  informed  them  there  was  a  white 
man  and  many  armed  natives,  who  had  gone  to 
Iferouan ;  whereupon  they  showed  signs  of 
uneasiness,  and  threw  the  woman  aside,  while 
exclaiming  denunciations  on    our    heads,    and, 


214  NORTHERN    AIR:    PART   II 

among  themselves,  saying  that  they  must  now 
hasten  on  their  way  to  Timia,  lest  we  return  on 
their  heels  or  intercept  them  on  their  way  north. 

It  is  also  now  known  definitely  that  the  robber 
band  were  Hogar  natives,  and  came  from  Janet, 
a  short  distance  south-west  of  Ghat,  in  the  terri- 
tory of  the  Asger  (Asdjer,  Azkar),  approximately 
some  500  miles  north  of  Timia,  and  were  led  by  a 
famous  and  much-feared  robber  chief  named 
Chebickee.  The  old  headman,  who,  of  course, 
had  ample  opportunity  to  see  everything  while 
captive,  says  the  band  were  mounted  on  exception- 
ally fine  camels,  as  I  and  the  goumiers  had  already 
surmised  from  the  large  footprints  in  the  sand. 

I  remained  on  in  Timia  while  the  wounded 
recovered  and  the  little  village  among  the  moun- 
tains gradually  settled  down  to  wonted  peaceful- 
ness. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN,   AOUDERAS,   AND    TARROUAJI 

After  collecting  specimens  for  some  little  time 
in  the  pleasant  neighbourhood  of  Timia,  I  set  out 
to  return  to  my  base  camp  on  Baguezan,  not  by 
the  route  I  had  come,  but  round  by  the  east  side 
of  the  mountain,  via  Tebernit  valley,  and  there- 
after along  the  southern  base  until  we  should 
come  to  the  pass  above  Tokede  which  I  had 
originally  climbed.  There  is  no  pass  in  the  north- 
em  or  eastern  mountain-sides  of  Baguezan. 

The  journey  by  this  route  occupied  four  days, 
as  against  two  and  a  half  days  by  the  more  direct 
route  on  the  western  side  by  which  I  had  travelled 
outward  to  Timia.  But,  in  general,  the  east  side 
of  Baguezan  is  easier  to  travel  along  with  camels 
than  the  rugged  western  side,  for  there  it  is 
possible  to  skirt  the  margin  of  the  stony  foothills 
that  lie  out  from  the  base  and  travel  along  the 
edge  of  the  sand  or  over  fairly  level  gravel- 
covered  ground. 

The  eastern  aspect  of  Baguezan  Mountains 
differs  from  that  of  the  west  in  that  it  presents  a 
more  abrupt  mountain  face  and  has  less  bulwark 
of  rugged  foothills  than  in  the  west,  where  the 
whole  country  below  the  plateau  is  broken  and 
mountainous ;     while   out   beyond   the   foothill 

215 


216  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

margin  on  the  east  side,  east  of  the  shallow 
Tebernit  valley,  the  land  stretches  away  in  a  flat- 
looking  plain,  which  contains  very  few  detached 
hills,  and,  in  places,  bears  a  fair  growth  of  open 
acacia  bush. 

Leaving  Tebernit  valley  and  advancing  round 
the  south-east  corner  of  Baguezan  the  Ouna  and 
Nabaro  rivers  are  crossed  :  wide  dry  stream-beds 
rising  from  deep  crevices  in  the  mountain- side. 
There  are  some  particularly  large  acacais  growing 
on  the  banks  of  the  Ouna  river,  while  there  is  a 
deserted  village  on  the  south  bank  of  the  stream. 
Altitude,  a  short  distance  north  of  Ouna  river, 
3,300  ft. 

So  completely  deserted  is  Ouna  village  and  the 
whole  territory,  that  I  see,  as  I  have  seen  elsewhere, 
confident  gazelles  resting  in  the  street  spaces, 
while  their  footprints  mark  the  sand  even  to  the 
very  doors  of  the  dwellings. 

Dorcas  Gazelles  are  fairly  plentiful  in  the 
country  east  of  Baguezan,  and  there  are  also  a 
few  Dama  Gazelles,  while  there  are  Wild'  Sheep 
on  the  mountain  faces  ;  but,  so  far  as  the  latter 
are  concerned,  the  rugged  western  side  of  the 
mountain  is  much  the  better  hunting-ground. 

The  flatness  of  the  country  east  of  Baguezan 
continues  round  into  the  south-east  for  a  long  way, 
and  it  is  not  until  Adekakit  river  is  reached  that 
the  aspect  changes  and  one  begins  to  enter  rugged 
foothills. 

Adekakit  river,  which  rises  in  a  remarkably 
deep  ravine  on  the  mountain  face,  is  a  broad  river- 
bed, with  fairly  fertile  banks,  which  support  some 
dum  palms,  and  the  south  side  of  the  mountain 


BEAUTIFUL  FOOTHILLS  217 

appears  to  be  the  only  locality  around  Baguezan 
base  where  those  trees  grow. 

By  the  time  Teouar  is  reached,  one  has  entered 
a  land  of  mountain  foothill  environment  and  en- 
counters many  scenes  of  rugged  beauty.  Par- 
ticularly fine  in  that  respect  is  the  journey  up  the 
Tessouma  river-bed  from  Teouar  to  Tokede.  The 
stream-bed  is  here  very  broad,  and  well  garbed  with 
trees  on  either  bank,  dum  palm,  a  few  date  palms, 
acacia  and  "Abisgee"  bush,  while  its  course  is 
channelled,  latterly  in  a  deep  twisting  rock- 
banked  gorge,  through  a  land  of  mountains,  some 
of  which  have  such  grotesque  shapes  and  towering 
heights  that  they  command  acute  admiration  and 
attention. 

Teouar  village  (altitude,  3,050  ft.)  stands  on 
high  stony  ground  on  the  east  bank  of  the  river. 
It  is  a  deserted  village  of  stone  huts.  Across  the 
river  there  are  some  date  palms,  and  here  we 
found  two  natives  cultivating  the  ground  beneath 
the  palms  in  spite  of  their  constant  fear  of  robbers. 
So  great  is  their  dread,  that  at  our  approach  to 
Teouar  we  descried  two  figures  fleeing  into  the 
hills  until  I  sent  the  goumiers  in  chase  of  them, 
and  to  hail  them  that  we  were  friends.  One  was 
armed  with  a  huge  heavy  long-barrelled  rifle,  long 
out  of  date,  while  the  other  had  only  a  hand-spear. 

I  have  already  described  the  ascent  from  Tokede 
to  Baguezan  plateau,  so  that  the  final  stage  of  my 
journey  back  into  Baguezan  need  not  here  be 
dwelt  on. 

It  was  early  in  July  when  I  re-entered  Baguezan, 
and  I  was  astonished  and  delighted  at  the  change 
which,  owing  to  considerable  rain  showers  in  June, 
16 


218  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

had  taken  place  during  my  absence.  Where 
all  had  been  bleak  and  overshadowed  with  the 
melancholy  grey  of  bare  rocky  hills,  there  are  now 
valleys  bearing  green-leafed  trees  and  green  grass, 
while  even  among  the  rocks  there  is  a  faint  tint  of 
greenness  where  thin  grass  or  small  plant  or  tiny 
bush  has  precarious  lodgment.  But  I  note  no 
bright  display  of  flowers,  which  is  because  the 
few  flowering  bushes  and  plants  have  blooms  that 
are  small  and  modest,  and  are  hidden  at  any 
distance  by  the  fullness  of  growth  of  green  leaf 
and  grass  blade.  Butterflies,  hitherto  remarkably 
scarce,  are  now  numerous  on  Baguezan  on  account 
of  the  prevailing  spring-like  conditions,  but  they 
are  not  of  great  variety  of  kind,  nor  brilliantly 
coloured,  nor  large  of  size,  being  chiefly  of  desert 
forms. 

The  few  days  I  remained  on  Baguezan  were 
occupied,  when  not  collecting,  in  packing  away 
boxes  of  specimens  in  readiness  to  travel,  and  in 
mending  my  bush-clothes  which  were  now  in  a 
sad  state  of  raggedness. 

On  4th  July  I  left  Baguezan  mountains  and  set 
out  to  Agades,  having,  by  camel  courier,  received 
a  request  to  come  in  to  meet  the  commandant 
of  the  Territoire  Militaire  du  Niger,  who  was  to 
arrive  at  Agades  from  Zinder  in  a  few  days  in  the 
course  of  a  round  of  inspection  of  outlying  posts. 

I  journeyed  back  to  Agades  by  the  way  I  had 
come,  and  spent  three  very  enjoyable  days  at  the 
Fort  in  the  society  of  fellow  Europeans — a  great 
treat  when  one  has  been  long  alone  except  for 
native  following. 

In   connection   with   the   last   remark,    being 


ml'  '  ''w 


BLESSED   RAIN  219 

alone  on  work  of  this  kind  has,  I  have  concluded, 
one  advantage,  which  may  be  set  against  its 
harshness  in  denying  companionship ;  and  that 
is  the  rare  opportunity  which  it  gives  to  undis- 
tracted  study.  When  a  man  in  ordinary  business 
life  wishes  to  pursue  deep  study,  it  is  common  habit 
to  select  a  quiet  room  where  he  may  sit  alone  in 
undisturbed  contemplation  of  his  subject.  And 
a  similar  privacy  has,  I  believe,  its  advantages  to 
the  man  out  on  the  trail :  alone,  he  is  better 
equipped  to  give  undivided  attention  to  study,  so 
long  as  the  period  of  research  is  not  too  protracted 
and  the  strain  of  loneliness  not  unbearable  to  the 
point  of  depression.  But  besides  this  advantage 
to  study,  besides  the  fate  which  circumstances  may 
impose,  I  would  be  one  of  the  first  to  say  to  any- 
one contemplating  a  journey  beyond  civilised 
frontiers :  "  Never  go  without  a  well-tried  comrade 
— if  you  can  help  it." 

But  to  return  to  my  narrative.  On  the  way 
in  to  Agades  I  experienced  a  rain-storm,  which 
illustrates  how  local  such  occurrences  often  are. 
My  caravan  was  five  miles  north-east  of  Agades 
on  the  evening  of  7th  July,  when  we  saw  black 
threatening  clouds  rolling  in  the  distance  appar- 
ently over  Agades,  and,  judging  it  prudent  not  to 
run  into  the  storm,  we  camped  at  Azzal  for  the 
night.  At  Azzal  we  experienced  strong  wind 
and  a  very  light  shower,  but  on  entering  Agades 
next  morning  we  learned  that  on  the  previous 
evening  a  regular  tornado  had  descended  upon  the 
place  (which  wrecked  the  wireless  plant)  and 
torrential  rains  had  fallen.  The  after  result  will 
be  that  at  Agades  (without  rain  until  this  storm) 


220  EAST    OF   BAGUEZAN 

the  vegetation  will  now  rapidly  grow  fresh  and 
green,  while  Azzal  and  the  other  places  unwatered 
will  remain  dormant.  Hence  at  this  season  parts 
of  Air  may  be  green,  like  Baguezan  and  localities 
further  north,  and  others  parched  and  leafless. 

It  was  during  this  journey  to  Agades  that  some 
particularly  fine  deceptive  mirages  were  seen. 
At  times  lakes  of  blue  water  bordered  with  marsh 
would  be  apparent  away  in  the  distance,  always, 
of  course,  to  fade  out  long  before  the  traveller 
could  draw  near  to  the  alluring  picture.  The 
whole  illusion  is  perfectly  clear  to  the  healthy 
traveller,  but  what  a  thing  of  torture  such  picture 
could  be  to  any  unfortunate  man  in  search  of 
water  in  the  barren  land — ^lakes  lying  before  our 
eyes,  but  for  ever  receding  out  of  agonised  reach. 

After  my  brief  visit  to  Agades,  which  had  inter- 
rupted previous  plans,  I  turned  again  northward, 
with  the  purpose  of  travelling  to  Aouderas,  where 
I  had  originally  intended  to  go  direct  from 
Baguezan. 

On  the  way  north  I  camped  at  Azzal  (altitude, 
1,825  ft.)  for  a  week  to  make  some  collections,  and, 
in  particular,  to  capture  some  specimens  of  the 
beautiful  Bee-eater,  Merops  albicollis  albicollis, 
which  up  to  that  time  I  had  not  seen  elsewhere. 

It  was  here,  at  the  settlement  on  the  banks  of 
the  Azzal  river,  which  contains  many  of  the  natives 
evacuated  from  northern  Air,  that  I  found  the 
Chief  of  Iferouan  with  a  number  of  his  tribe  about 
him.  His  people  had  been  accustomed  to  grow 
wheat  at  Iferouan,  and  it  was  interesting  to  note 
that  they  had  commenced,  with  considerable 
success,  to  establish  the  same  crop  cultivation  at 


AN  OLD   PILGRIM  ROUTE  221 

Azzal,  with  the  aid  of  deep  wells  and  primitive 
irrigation.  But  the  Chief  declared  that  he  and 
his  people  longed  to  be  free  to  return  to  Iferouan — 
"  Our  hearts  are  there,  not  in  Azzal."  A  senti- 
ment which  recalled  the  words  of  the  Chief  of 
Baguezan  in  decrying  the  Sahara  south  of  Air  as 
of  no  attraction  to  his  people  :  "  There  are  no 
mountains  there,  and  how  could  we  live  without 
them  !  " 

The  Chief  of  Iferouan  had  been  across  Africa 
on  the  old  pilgrim  route,  which  he  described  to  me 
as  follows  :  From  the  country  of  the  Tuaregs  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Timbuktu  the  route  crosses 
Upper  Senegal  to  Zinder  on  the  Niger  river,  thence 
it  skirts  the  northern  borders  of  Sokoto  (Nigeria), 
and  then  strikes  north-east  to  Agades,  and  con- 
tinues through  Air  via  Aouderas,  Aguellal,  and 
Iferouan  (or  alternatively  via  Assode),  there- 
after continuing  away  northward  to  Tripoli  on  the 
seaboard  of  the  Mediterranean,  touching  on  the 
way  the  important  points  of  Ghat,  Rhadames,  and 
Djebel.  So  far  as  this  ancient  pilgrim  route 
concerns  Air,  the  old  caravan  roads  are  still  to  be 
seen  with  undiminished  clearness  when  they  pass 
over  stony  ground  where  no  sand  accumulates 
and  not  a  blade  of  vegetation  has  root.  At  such 
places  one  may  see  ten  to  fifteen  single  foot-wide 
paths  running  parallel  to  each  other  camel-width 
apart,  light-coloured  clearly  defined  lines  where 
the  dark  gravel  surface  of  the  natural  ground  has 
been  brushed  aside  or  powdered  down  by  passage 
of  countless  feet.  When  those  old  roads  lead  off 
such  stony  ground  through  rocks  between  hills 
or  over  ridges,  where  the  way  is  barred  with  rocks 


222  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

and  boulders,  the  road  changes  always  to  a  narrow 
much-worn  single  defile,  which  turns  and  twists 
where  passage  for  camels  has  been  found  possible, 
or,  by  labour  of  hands,  made  possible.  Again, 
when  those  old  roads  enter  and  continue  along  the 
loose  sandy  bed  of  a  dry  river,  there  remains  no 
sign  of  track  whatever,  as  all  marks  have  been 
long  washed  away  by  wind  and  flood. 

Accompanied  by  ten  goumiers,  I  left  Azzal  on 
the  19th  July  en  route  to  Aouderas,  three  days' 
journey  north.  At  Dabaga,  on  the  Azzal  river, 
we  branched  off  the  route  to  Baguezan,  and 
headed  due  north  until  we  cut  into  the  Tilisdak 
river,  when  we  turned  eastward  until  Aouderas 
was  reached.  I  will  not  enter  upon  detailed  de- 
scription of  the  journey  to  Aouderas,  for  the  barren 
country  was  of  the  same  rugged,  stony,  hill-dotted 
nature  as  that  described  south  of  Baguezan. 
The  altitude  at  Dabaga  registered  2,100  ft.,  at 
Germat,  on  the  Tilisdak  river,  2,350  ft.,  and  at 
Aouderas,  2,700  ft.,  so  that  (as  experienced  on 
the  journey  to  Baguezan)  a  decided  ascent  takes 
place  between  Agades  (1,710  ft.)  and  the  base  of 
the  most  southern  mountain  ranges,  once  the  sand 
plains  are  left  behind  and  the  true  rock  region  of 
Air  entered. 

Fortunately  it  was  not  a  very  long  journey  to 
Aouderas,  for  the  climate  at  this  time  was  particu- 
larly trying,  as  it  was  the  season  preceding  the 
Rains,  which  period,  and  the  period  just  after  the 
Rains,  are  the  most  unhealthy  for  European  or 
native,  and  much  sickness  (principally  malaria) 
then  prevails.  At  these  times  many  of  the  days 
are  unpleasantly  hot  and  enervating — days  that 


AOUDERAS  223 

from  sunrise  to  sunset  are  breathless  and  sultry 
and  heavily  oppressive.  While,  as  to  the  in- 
tensity of  the  heat,  an  afternoon  temperature  on 
20th  July  registered  102°  Fahr.  in  the  shade. 

The  little  village  of  Aouderas  is  tucked  away 
in  an  open  glen  in  the  foothills  of  Aouderas 
mountains,  and  is  surrounded  on  all  sides  by 
rugged  hills  and  mountainous  landscape.  The 
Aouderas  river  runs  through  the  glen,  and  the 
village  is  built  upon  its  banks.  In  places  where 
there  are  small  pockets  of  level  ground  between 
the  river-bank  and  the  rising  hill-side,  there  are 
a  goodly  number  of  date  palms  growing  in  the 
gardens  of  grain  cultivated  beneath  their  shade, 
which  makes  very  attractive  scenes  after  the 
barren  greyness  of  the  land  to  the  south. 

I  was  warmly  received  by  the  Chief  of  Aouderas 
and  his  tribe,  who  had  news  that  I  was  coming, 
and,  to  my  surprise,  I  found,  as  on  no  other  like 
occasion,  that  a  hut  had  already  been  built  for  me 
on  a  nicely  cleared  space  of  ground.  I  find  that 
all  Air  natives  know  of  "  the  Hunting  White  Man  " 
now,  and  each  new  place  that  I  visit,  where  there 
are  natives,  my  welcome  increases  in  cordiality 
and  there  is  less  suspicion  of  the  stranger. 

On  the  day  I  entered  Aouderas  there  was  a 
caravan  of  natives,  with  camels  and  donkeys, 
camped  there,  who,  with  a  posse  of  goumiers,  were, 
in  obedience  to  orders  from  Agades,  on  their 
way  north  to  Iferouan  to  gather  dates,  which  are 
now  ripening.  Some  of  those  natives  openly 
declared  that  they  were  afraid  of  the  journey,  and 
related  to  me  the  following  story  :  "  Last  year,  at 
this  season,  a  party  went  north  on  the  same  errand, 


224  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

and,  in  the  night,  when  camped  at  Iberkom,  they 
were  surprised  by  Tebu  robbers,  and  three  of 
them  were  killed  and  two  captured  and  bound 
and  carried  off,  as  were  also  all  the  donkeys 
which  were  to  have  transported  the  dates  to 
Agades." 

During  the  time  I  camped  at  Aouderas  I  spent 
much  time  in  the  mountains  and  witnessed  many 
of  the  wild  magnificent  scenes  which  are  to  be 
found  on  the  tops  and  in  rock-girt  valleys,  whether 
one  travels  eastward  or  westward  or  northward 
among  the  many  ranges.     In  the  detached  Amat- 
tasa  mountains,  west  of  Aouderas,  I  hunted  to  an 
altitude  of  4,000  ft.,  which  is  near  to  but  not  the 
highest  summit ;  and  in  the  Aouderas  mountains, 
north  of  the  village,  I  reached  an  altitude  over  3,000 
ft.,  which,  however,  is  a  long  way  from  the  summit 
of  this  massive  rugged  range.     There  is  some  very 
fine  scenery  in  the  Amattasa  range,  while  on  the 
east  side  of  it  there  is  a  rocky  river-bed  which  has 
a  course  in  a  cliff-banked  gully  that  cuts  deeply 
below  the  level  of  the  surrounding  land.     The 
natives  call  this  river  the  Tarare.     Immediately 
below  a  ruined  village  of  the  same  name  there  is, 
in  this  stream,  a  remarkable  dry  waterfall  of  great 
height,  while  in  deep  cavities  in  the  rock  at  the 
bottom  there  are  pools  of  open  water  and  some 
green  vegetation  ;    the  only  place  in  Air  where 
I  have  found  a  river  containing  open  water  in  the 
dry  season  which  was  long-lying  and  not  the  out- 
come of  recent  rains.     The  cliffs  of  the  fall  and 
the  sheer  banks  on  either  side  were  the  haunts 
of  numerous  dark-coloured   apes,  which   stared 
curiously  upon  the  strange  intruders  and  barked 


COUNTRY  NEAR  AOUDERAS     225 

repeatedly.  There  is,  also,  a  cave  at  the  foot  of 
the  east  bank  which  the  Chief  of  Aouderas 
declares  used  to  be  the  home  of  lions. 

Passing  north  of  Amattasa  mountains,  the  river 
Tarare  runs  out  into  a  very  wide  valley  of  dark 
gravel  ground,  with  hills  and  mountains  on  all 
sides  ;  and  this  is  the  way  through  from  Aouderas 
Glen  to  the  Assada  valley,  which  lies  between 
Baguezan  and  Bela  mountains,  and  which  I  had 
viewed,  further  north,  from  the  head  of  the 
north-west  pass  out  of  Baguezan. 

The  Chief  of  Aouderas,  whose  name  is  Ochullu, 
proved  to  be  a  fine  hunter,  and  thoroughly 
friendly,  and  together  we  hunted  in  all  directions, 
sleeping  among  the  mountains  at  night  on  occa- 
sions, so  that  we  might  travel  farther  and  be  high 
in  the  hills  at  break  of  day. 

Besides  collecting  birds,  and  small  mammals, 
and  butterflies  in  the  Aouderas  neighbourhood,  I 
had  the  good  fortune  to  kill  three  wild  sheep 
(wily  difficult  animals  to  approach),  one  of  them  a 
nice  museum  specimen,  which  was  skinned  com- 
plete, while  another  proved  to  be  the  largest  of  the 
kind  which  I  shot  in  Air,  weighing  164  lbs.,  but 
was,  unfortunately,  no  use  as  a  specimen,  as  it  had 
one  massive  horn  diseased  at  the  base. 

Ochullu  was  not  nearly  so  active  among  the 
rocks  as  Minerou  (the  Chief  of  Baguezan),  and 
whereas  Minerou  had  led  me  many  a  pretty  dance 
among  wild  mountain-tops,  I  found  it  was  now 
my  turn  to  reverse  the  position  and  give  Ochullu 
some  gruelling  experiences. 

With  reference  to  this  subject  I  received  about 
this  time  a  letter  from  the  Commanding  Officer  at 


226  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

Agades,  which  contained  the  following  paragraph  : 
"  Minerou  has  come  to  Agades  ;  he  told  me  you 
are  not  fat,  you  climb  the  rocks  like  the  Ragin- 
douchi  (wild  sheep),  and  you  are  very  fond  of  rats  ; 
so  everything  is  right."  Let  me  hasten  to  add 
that  even  although  I  may  be  lean,  /  do  not  eat  rats. 
(The  amusing  remark  of  Minerou  is  intended  to 
refer  to  my  efforts  to  collect  small  rodents  of  all 
kinds.) 

But,  to  return  to  the  subject  of  the  preceding 
paragraph,  if  not  a  hard  hunter,  Ochullu  was  a 
wise  one,  who  knew  every  crevice  in  the  mountains 
and  the  habits  of  our  quarry,  so  that  it  was  a 
pleasure  to  set  out  with  him. 

Ochullu  has  a  memorable  mark  upon  his  person, 
which  I  shall  always  associate  with  this  "  Child 
of  the  mountains  " — a  deep  sword  wound  slashed 
across  his  left  side,  which  was  often  exposed  when 
he  lifted  his  arm  and  the  loose  mantle  drapings  of 
his  sleeve  uncovered  his  swarthy  side,  which, 
below  the  armpit,  was  bare  to  the  waist. 

Ochullu,  like  all  Tuaregs,  is  familiar  with 
robbers  and  with  fighting.  In  fact  I  believe  he 
is  inclined  to  be  a  bit  of  an  independent  outlaw 
himself,  for  he  showed  me  a  hiding-place,  high  in 
the  Aouderas  range,  where  he  and  his  tribe  had 
fled  from  the  French  soldiers  during  the  1916 
rising,  and  where  they  had  hidden  till  a  peace- 
able truce  was  arranged.  While  now,  at  the  time 
of  my  visit,  he  does  not  appear  altogether  content 
to  acknowledge  the  authority  of  the  newly 
appointed  Sultan  of  Agades. 

Among  other  interesting  things,  Ochullu 
showed  me  where  last  year,  one  afternoon,  twelve 


THE  PROXIMITY  OF  ROBBERS  227 

robbers  had  come  in  close  to  Aouderas  and  lain 
in  hiding  in  a  ravine  while  two  of  their  band  went 
right  in  to  the  village  outskirts  and  spoke  as 
friends  to  a  native  woman,  gathering  wood,  whom 
they  craftily  questioned  as  to  the  inmates  of  the 
village.  They  sought  to  obtain  news  of  the  move- 
ments of  the  white  men  in  Agades  ;  whether  there 
were  any  soldiers  in  the  neighbourhood,  whether 
or  not  the  Chief  of  Aouderas  was  at  home  in  the 
village,  and  how  many  rifles  the  natives  possessed. 
However,  Ochullu  and  some  armed  men  chanced 
to  be  at  home  at  the  time,  which  circumstance 
was  apparently  disquieting  to  the  robbers,  for 
they  thereafter  prudently  withdrew,  taking  with 
them  two  camels  which  they  had  found  grazing 
near  where  they  lay  in  hiding.  But  that  same 
band  proceeded  to  Baguezan,  and  it  was  they 
who  a  few  days  later  raided  camels  of  Baguezan 
and  killed  the  late  Chief  Yofa,  as  I  have  previously 
related. 

Ochullu  made  some  interesting  remarks  with 
regard  to  Rains.  Thus  far  it  has  been  a  rainless 
year  at  Aouderas,  like  last  year,  and  Ochullu 
declares  that  if  rain  does  not  fall  with  the  present 
moon  (full  moon,  27th  July,  to-morrow),  none 
will  come  this  year.  Further,  he  told  me  that 
Aouderas  would  still  have  water  in  the  wells  in 
the  event  of  no  proper  rainfall  occurring  for  a 
period  of  four  years,  while  he  says  Iferouan, 
Timia,  and  Azzal  all  suffer  want  if  there  is  not 
rainfall  in  two  years. 

Ochullu  is  very  superstitious,  and  declares  that 
if  only  the  Sultan  of  Agades  would  call  all  the 
people  of  the  land  together  and  make  a  great 


228  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

united  prayer  to  Allah,  they  would  then  surely 
have  rain. 

On  1st  August  I  left  Aouderas  and  started 
south,  intending  to  return  to  Agades  to  commence 
the  long  journey  south  to  Kano,  after  circling 
round  the  eastern  side  of  the  Massif  of  Tarrouaji. 

Accompanied  by  the  goumiers,  I  departed  from 
Aouderas  at  dusk  after  warm  leave-taking  with 
Ochullu  and  many  of  his  tribe,  among  whom  I 
had  been  made  welcome  from  the  start ;  while 
I  carried  away  a  number  of  bundles  of  fresh  dates 
(the  first  of  the  season),  presented  by  the  Chief  in 
final  token  of  goodwill :  a  gift  which  I  afterwards 
conveyed  all  the  way  home  to  England.  We 
travelled  till  very  late  by  light  of  the  full  moon, 
and  camped  out  in  the  stony  Ararouat  plains, 
which  I  had  passed  through  before  on  the  way  to 
Baguezan. 

Continuing  at  dawn  on  the  following  day,  we 
crossed  the  extensive  gravel-covered  plain  which 
lies  between  the  Ararouat  river  and  the  northern 
base  of  Tarrouaji,  and  camped  about  noon  on  the 
In  Ouajou  river  (altitude,  2,750  ft.),  a  small  dry 
river-bed  in  flat  country  north  of  the  massive  hill 
range. 

In  the  late  afternoon  a  thunderstorm  advanced 
over  us,  and,  much  to  my  relief,  some  rain  fell ;  for, 
previous  to  leaving  Aouderas,  I  had  been  warned 
that  no  water  is  to  be  found  anywhere  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Tarrouaji  in  the  dry  season,  and  all 
the  goumiers  were  averse  to  my  attempting  to 
make  the  journey.  Nevertheless,  I  had  set 
out ;  but  when  search  for  water  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  our  In  Ouajou  camp  had  proved 


TARROUAJI  229 

completely  fruitless,  I  began  to  fear  that  our  plight 
would  force  me  to  give  up  the  intention  of  going 
round  Tarrouaji — and  then  the  storm  broke, 
leaving  small  pools  of  water  in  its  wake,  and  an 
awkward  situation  was  saved.  As  the  natives  put 
it :  "  Allah  had  listened  to  me." 

Srd  August. — I  remarked  this  morning,  after 
the  rain,  a  few  short  hours  of  dawn,  when  earth 
was  damp  and  grass  roots  already  green  and  the 
pipe  of  wilderness  birds  filled  the  air  with  un- 
wonted cheerfulness.  .  .  .  For  a  moment  spring 
in  the  desert  .  .  .  ere  stilled  in  its  birth  by 
scorching  sun  and  driving  sand. 

Travelled  from  daylight  to  dusk  round  the 
eastern  base  of  Tarrouaji,  and  camped  at  a  pool  of 
water,  which  was  found  close  in  imder  the  hills 
after  some  searching. 

From  the  north  and  east  the  massif  of  Tarrouaji 
appears  a  great  jumble  of  hills  of  no  great  height, 
which  do  not  die  out  at  the  plain's  edge  with  the 
impressive  strength  that  may  be  found  in  great 
mountain  slopes  or  towering  cliffs,  but  rather  do 
they  tail  away  in  broken  diminishing  lines  to 
outlying  plains,  where  little  straggling  hills  of  rock 
are  seen  as  far  as  the  eye  can  penetrate. 

On  the  following  day  I  did  not  resume  caravan 
travel,  but  left  the  goumiers  in  camp  and  set  out 
before  dawn  to  climb  into  Tarrouaji  hill-tops. 
During  the  day  the  highest  of  numerous  altitudes 
recorded  was  3,100  ft.,  and,  so  far  as  I  could  judge 
by  eye,  I  doubt  if  any  of  the  innumerable  crowded 
hill-tops  which  constitute  this  range  exceed  that 
figure.  As  the  altitude  of  our  camp  on  the  east 
base  of  the  range  was  2,300  ft.,  the  actual  eleva- 


230  EAST    OF    BAGUEZAN 

tion  of  the  range  itself,  to  its  highest  points,  in 
that  quarter  was  therefore  only  800  ft. 

Those  hills  hold  wild  and  barren  scenes  and  no 
fertility,  and  are  seldom,  if  ever,  entered  by  natives, 
which  accounts,  no  doubt,  for  the  number  of  Bar- 
bary  Sheep  which  I  found  inhabiting  this  range 
and  the  ease  with  which  I  could  approach  them. 
Hitherto  I  had  been  mightily  pleased  if  I  got  a 
single  shot  at  sheep  during  a  day's  hunting,  but 
on  this  day  I  killed  no  fewer  than  four  animals, 
and  looked  upon  half  a  dozen  others  within  range 
which  I  allowed  to  go  unharmed.  It  was  here 
that  I  secured  the  best  head  taken  by  me  in  Air 
of  the  new  subspecies  of  Barbary  Sheep  (Ammo- 
tragus  lervia  angusi). 

5th  August. — ^We  left  our  camp  on  the  east  side 
of  Tarrouaji  in  the  middle  of  the  night,  and 
travelled  on  round  to  the  south  side  of  the  range  as 
far  as  the  district  known  as  Tin-Daouin,  where  we 
camped  for  the  day  while  I  skinned  a  specimen 
of  vulture  I  had  shot.  Thunder  had  been  over  us 
yesterday,  but  very  little  rain  fell ;  however,  to-day 
we  entered  country  where  it  was  apparent  there 
had  been  heavy  rain  yesterday,  for  the  ground 
was  water-soaked,  and  the  sands  of  the  river-beds 
were  cast  in  freshly  lain  wavelets  as  the  result  of 
flood  an  hour  or  two  subsided. 

6th  August. — ^We  saddled  our  camels  and  were 
away  at  dawn,  and  travelled  till  3.30  p.m.,  when 
we  camped  in  Tin-Teborag  valley  (altitude,  1,900 
ft.),  having  left  the  hills  of  Tarrouaji  behind  and 
advanced  near  to  Agades,  which  now  lay  due  west 
not  far  distant.  Throughout  the  day  the  country 
was  rolling  and  somewhat  roughly  broken,  while  a 


OUT  OF  THE  HILLS  281 

number  of  broad  valleys  were  crossed  at  intervals 
where  river  tributaries  trend  south  to  join  the 
mainstream  Tin-Daouin,  which  passes  eastward 
in  a  flat  valley  well  away  from  the  hills.  Those 
valleys,  with  river-bed  in  their  centre,  are  wide 
and  very  shallow,  as  is  usual  everywhere  in  low- 
land in  Air,  with  little  or  no  banks ;  merely  a 
slight  slope  of  gravel  or  rock  surroundings,  termin- 
ating where  sand  and  grass  tussocks  and  trees 
of  the  valley  begin.  Much  of  the  undulating 
country  is  of  pleasant  warm-coloured  browns  and 
greys  in  certain  morning  and  evening  lights : 
wide  stretches  of  ground  surface  of  pebbles  of  an 
orderly  smallness  and  sameness,  as  smoothly  and 
well-arranged  as  a  pebble  beach  on  seashore 
which  the  tide  has  just  left.  Indeed  the  whole 
outlook  in  such  foothill  gravel  country  of  an  early 
morn  is  remarkable :  strange  because  of  the 
absence  of  earth  and  vegetation,  but  with  an 
artistic  appeal  to  the  eye  on  account  of  its  striking 
orderliness  and  cleanness  and  uncommon  purity 
of  colour. 

On  the  following  evening  we  travelled  in  to 
Agades  :  my  travels  in  the  mountains  of  Air  at 
an  end,  and  the  long  journey  south  to  Nigeria  all 
that  lay  between  me  and  the  completion  of  my 
travels. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE   TUAREGS   OF  AIR 

Before  concluding  this  narrative  I  would  like  to 
make  brief  reference  to  the  native  inhabitants  of 
Air. 

I  have  said  elsewhere  that  the  total  population 
of  Air  at  the  present  time  is  made  up  of  5,000 
Tuaregs.  And  they  are  strange  people — the 
strangest  race  I  have  ever  come  in  contact  with — 
independent,  haughty,  daring,  unscrupulous,  and 
lazy  in  leisure,  yet  fit  to  rank  among  the  finest 
travellers  and  camel-riders  in  the  world.  If  one 
is  to  judge  these  Tuaregs  fairly,  one  must  try  to 
conceive  their  surroundings  and  realise  the  all- 
important  fact  that  they  are  practically  wild 
people  in  a  wild  land  that  lies  remote  and  un- 
known, and  that  they  have  had  no  advantages  to 
influence  them  to  be  aught  but  wholly  primitive. 
While,  further,  it  may  be  well  to  remember  that 
they  are  the  remnant  descendants  of  a  race  that 
was  once  crafty  and  able  in  war  ;  indeed,  even  in 
the  present  day,  they  consider  themselves  the 
aristocrats  of  the  land,  and  look  down  with  scarcely 
veiled  contempt  on  all  negro  tribes. 

To  the  French  officers  and  to  many  Hausa 
natives  they  are  known  as  downright  rascals, 
because  they  are  cunning  and  deceitful  in  the 
most  unprincipled  way  the  moment  they  have 

232 


CHARACTER  OF  NATIVES  288 

any  dealings  with  strangers,  and  I  imagine  that 
among  themselves  they  hold  belief  that  anyone 
outside  their  own  tribe  is  a  legitimate  enemy  to 
be  overcome,  if  possible,  by  cunning  artifice,  since 
strength  of  arms  is  no  longer  theirs. 

For  my  own  part  I  found  the  Tuaregs  of  Air 
difficult  people  to  deal  with,  and  impossible  people 
to  rely  on.  Except  at  Timia  and  Aouderas,  I  met 
with  no  sincere  friendliness  at  their  hands,  and 
was  inclined  to  be  wholly  harsh  in  my  judgment 
of  them  all,  until  my  later  experiences  prompted 
me  to  be  more  inclined  to  mitigate  my  opinion  of 
their  shortcomings  ;  for,  after  all,  especially  with 
primitive  natives,  one  must  live  among  such 
people  for  a  long  time  to  break  through  that 
protective  reserve  that  shuts  out  the  stranger  as  a 
suspect  and  interloper,  and  to  learn  to  know  them 
from  an  intimate  point  of  view. 

In  appearance  these  Tuaregs,  who  are  an 
Arab -like  Semitic  race,  are  not  tall.  The  men  are 
generally  of  strong,  wiry  build,  inclined,  if 
anything,  to  slimness,  and  I  have  never  seen  one 
of  their  sex  in  any  degree  corpulent.  The  women 
are  smaller  than  the  men,  many  of  them  not  much 
more  than  five  feet  in  height,  and,  at  middle  age, 
often  grow  to  moderate  stoutness. 

The  features  of  the  Tuareg  natives  are  usually 
of  a  swarthy  copper  colour  of  fairly  light  hue, 
while  a  few  of  them  are  as  yellowish-white  as 
Arabs.  Their  features  are,  of  course,  not  of  blunt 
negro  type,  and — when  they  can  be  seen  un- 
masked— there  is  a  pleasant  variety  of  facial 
character  among  them,  and  no  two  are  found  to 
be  alike. 
17 


234  THE   TUAREGS    OF   AIR 

Many  of  the  women  paint  their  faces — especially 
when  attending  a  marriage  or  a  feast — ^with  a 
hideous  pigment,  sometimes  yellow  and  some- 
times red. 

The  men,  without  exception,  wear  the  yashmak 
over  their  faces  on  all  occasions.  This  is  a  long 
swathe  of  cotton  cloth,  sometimes  white,  but 
generally  dark  blue  or  black,  which  is  wound  round 
the  head  so  that  the  lower  folds  cover  all  the  face 
up  to  the  centre  of  the  nose-bridge,  while  the 
upper  folds  are  passed  over  the  forehead  and 
overlap  the  eyebrows,  so  that  a  hood  is  formed  to 
shade  the  eyes  from  the  fierce  rays  of  the  sun. 
All  that  remains  visible  of  an  individual's  face  are 
two  piercing  dark  eyes  that  peer  out  of  the  narrow 
slit  in  the  mask.  One  may  know  Tuaregs  thus 
masked  for  months,  and  identify  individuals 
by  little  more  than  their  eyes  ;  but  should  the 
yashmak  ever  be  removed,  the  transformation  is 
so  staggering  that  it  is  impossible  to  recognise 
the  person  at  all,  since  you  have  never  seen  the 
face  before  in  its  entirety.  The  women  wear  a 
cotton  shawl  cast  over  the  crown  of  the  head,  in 
typical  work-girl  fashion,  but  they  do  not  cover 
the  face  or  wear  yashmak  in  any  form.  Wearing 
the  yashmak  is  a  Moslem  custom,  but  outside  its 
religious  purport  I  am  not  sure  but  that  it  is  a  very 
comfortable  and  sensible  thing  for  those  nomads 
of  desert  places  to  wear,  for  it  serves  as  splendid 
protection  to  the  face  in  biting  sandstorms,  since 
it  completely  covers  the  mouth  and  nostrils  and 
ears,  while  it  hoods  the  eyes  from  fierce  and  tiring 
sun-glare. 

As  to  the  garb  of  the  men,  they  are  clothed  in 


XLAliJiU    i;ulS    OF    BAUUEZAiV    MUUNTALNJ. 


"ATAGOOM,"   A    lUABEQ    NATIVE    OF   AlH    LV    TYPICAL    DRESS. 


231] 


DRESS   OF  NATIVES  285 

full-flowing  cotton  gowns  which  reach  almost  to 
the  ground,  while  folds  drop  from  the  shoulders 
to  the  elbows  to  look  like  wide  sleeves  without 
being  actually  sewn  to  that  form.  Underneath 
this  robe  are  worn  loose  baggy  cotton  trousers 
secured  round  the  waist.  The  robes  are,  in  general, 
white  or  dark  indigo-blue  (a  dye  locally  obtained 
in  Hausaland,  where  all  Tuareg  clothing  is 
bought),  and  the  latter  colour  is  the  most  becoming. 
All  the  men  wear  leather  sandals  on  otherwise 
naked  feet.  For  ornament  they  wear  leather 
wallets  containing  charms  and  trinkets,  which 
are  hung  in  front  of  the  person  suspended  from  a 
cord  round  the  neck.  Bangles  above  the  elbows 
on  the  arms  are  also  commonly  worn,  usually 
made  out  of  soft  slate-like  native  stone,  which 
may  be  hewn  to  bangle-shape  and  then  polished 
to  a  glossy  blackness  ;  sometimes  the  bangles  are 
of  cheap  metal,  welded  out  of  scraps  of  brass  or 
tin  by  the  local  blacksmith.  All  Tuaregs  carry 
double-edged  swords  in  a  leather  sheath  slung 
over  the  shoulder  on  a  strap. 

The  women  wear  loose  cotton  garb  swathed 
about  them,  but,  being  of  diminutive  stature,  they 
seldom  bear  anything  of  the  native  gracefulness 
which  is  often  associated  with  the  men,  many  of 
whom  have  more  than  ordinary  vanity  as  to  their 
appearance  and  carry  themselves  accordingly. 
The  women  are  much  given  to  wearing  bright 
coloured  cottons,  and  sometimes  the  effect  in 
sombre  surroundings  is  very  pleasant.  For  orna- 
ment the  women  principally  wear  bangles  both  on 
the  wrists  and  above  the  elbows,  necklaces  to 
which  one  or  more  charm  is  attached,  and  earrings. 


236  THE    TUAREGS    OF   AIR 

With  regard  to  the  wealth  of  the  natives,  I 
think  it  may  safely  be  said  that  they  are  a  poor 
people,  if  we  except  one  or  two  chiefs  who  possibly 
have  fair  means.  The  wealthiest  individual  that 
I  questioned  on  this  matter  was  a  native  of  Timia, 
who  possessed  thirty  camels,  which,  if  valued  at 
£12  a  piece — which  is  a  fair  average  price — would 
place  his  total  wealth  at  £360.  But  the  property 
of  the  ordinary  native  of  Air  is  usually  comprised 
of  one  or  two  camels  and  a  number  of  goats, 
ranging  from  herds  of  five  to  thirty  according 
to  their  means.  The  camels,  besides  being  the 
means  of  transporting  private  stores  of  grain  from 
the  south,  bring  in  a  certain  ready-cash  return 
(usually  about  two  francs  per  camel  per  day) 
when  hired  by  traders  or  military  authorities  to 
make  up  a  caravan  journey  to  Hausaland  or  else- 
where. The  goat-herds  furnish  milk,  which  is 
a  staple  food  among  the  Tuaregs — liquid  or  in 
the  form  of  cheese ;  while  male  animals  are 
butchered  from  time  to  time,  the  meat  eaten,  and 
the  hides  turned  to  domestic  use  or  sold. 

The  Tuaregs  of  Air  appear  to  be  a  fairly  healthy 
race,  but  the  women  do  not  bear  large  families, 
and  I  am  told  that  there  is  a  good  deal  of  inbreed- 
ing wherever  there  are  small  local  settlements. 
Outside  of  Agades  there  is  no  European  doctor 
(at  Agades  there  is  a  doctor,  the  only  one  north 
of  Zinder),  and  the  country  would  benefit  greatly 
if  it  could  support  an  adequate  medical  staff. 

The  language  of  the  Tuaregs,  which  they  call 
Tamashack  (Temashight  and  Tarkiye :  Barth)^ 
is  much  more  difficult  to  learn  than  Hausa,  and  is 
spoken  in  a  peculiar  rapid-running  fashion,  which 


CIRCUMSTANCES  CONCERNING  NATIVES   237 

makes  it  very  difficult  to  grasp  the  distinct  sound- 
ing of  the  vowels.  Tuareg  voices  are  often 
pleasantly  soft  and  musical. 

I  have  remarked  with  interest  that  tree  names 
and  the  names  of  birds  and  animals  are  well- 
known  to  almost  all  the  natives,  even  boys  at  an 
early  age  having  much  knowledge  of  the  nature 
about  them.  How  many  of  us  at  home  can  name 
all  the  trees  and  birds  of  the  common  roadside  ? 
But  then  we  are  really  an  indoor,  over-civilised 
people,  while  those  natives  of  the  outdoors  miist 
know  Nature  and  something  of  her  secrets,  since 
she  provides  their  livelihood :  food,  building 
material,  ropes,  saddlery,  leather,  clothing,  dyes, 
medicines,  even  luxuries — all  that  is  essential  to 
man's  needs,  the  Tuareg  harvests  from  his  country- 
side, in  small  portion,  whether  he  seek  among  the 
branch-tops,  or  digs  at  the  tree-roots,  or  kills 
with  arrow  or  noose-trap,  or  sows  and  reaps 
grain  with  the  two  hands  Creation  gave  him  and 
little  else  besides  the  scraps  of  metal  he  fashions 
to  bring  to  his  aid. 

On  the  other  hand,  so  far  as  one  can  observe, 
these  natives  do  not  discern  beauty  in  the  scenes 
about  them,  and  I  have  often  witnessed  them  pass 
by  some  exceptionally  fair  picture  without  paying 
the  slightest  attention  to  it.  They  are,  however, 
attracted  by  strange  shapes,  such  as  are  often  to 
be  seen  among  the  rugged  mountain-tops,  and 
they  sometimes  exclaim  and  point  these  out. 

These  natives  have  also  some  meagre  knowledge 
of  the  great  world  outside  their  own  land  :  no 
doubt  scraps  of  information  brought  to  their  ears 
by  their  Mohammedan  priests,  or  by  those  wha 


238  THE    TUAREGS    OF   AIR 

have  made  the  pilgrimage  to  Mecca  and  returned 
ahve.  They  know,  for  instance,  that  there  are 
such  races  as  Japanese  and  Indians ;  while  they 
have  a  Tamashack  name  for  fish,  and  know  that 
this  is  a  creature  that  lives  in  the  water  and  is 
good  to  eat,  though  none  exist  anywhere  in  Air. 

The  Mohammedan  religion,  and  sects  of 
Mohammedanism,  such  as  Senussi,  constitute  the 
faith  of  the  natives  of  Air,  and  they  are  very 
devout. 

In  their  domestic  life,  it  seems  to  me,  the 
Tuaregs  know  little  of  the  beauty  of  love.  Mar- 
riage to  them  is  something  of  an  animal  instinct, 
and  the  devotion  of  the  men  is  never  sacred  to  one 
woman,  for  they  have  usually  from  two  to  four 
wives.  As  an  instance  of  their  apparent  lack  of 
deep  devotion,  I  have  seen  Tuaregs,  after  being 
away  on  a  journey  with  their  camels  for  months, 
return  to  their  home-village  and  alight  on  the 
outskirts  to  enter  into  promiscuous  conversation 
with  the  crowd  of  men  that  quickly  gather  to  hear 
the  news  the  travellers  bring,  and  have  known  them 
to  spend  hours  thus  engaged  before  they  give  a 
thought  to  go  forward  to  their  huts  to  greet  their 
wives  and  children  :  surely  a  strange  indifference 
to  domestic  devotion  on  the  part  of  men  who  have 
been  long  away  from  home. 

In  daily  life  it  is  the  custom  of  the  natives  to 
rise  before  daylight,  and  they  are  already  started 
on  the  road  if  they  are  travelling,  or  at  work  about 
their  hut  doors  if  they  are  in  camp,  before  dawn 
lightens  the  eastern  horizon.  But  you  are  not 
to  conclude  from  this  that  they  are  energetic 
people,  far  from  it ;   I  believe  that,  except  when 


A  LAZY  RACE  239 

travelling,  the  men  are  the  laziest  people  I  have 
ever  met.  By  8  a.m.  I  have  known  men  to  lie 
down  in  their'  huts,  and  not  again  make  any 
attempt  to  rise  and  exert  themselves  until  4  or  5 
p.m.  in  the  cool  of  the  evening.  The  dreadfully  hot 
climate  tends  towards  such  laziness,  but  without 
doubt  it  is  inherent  in  the  blood.  And  their  lazy 
life  begins  in  childhood,  for  at  an  early  age  the 
children  are  sent  out  by  their  parents  to  herd 
the  goats  ;  and  through  the  heat  of  a  long  day 
the  youngsters  chiefly  spend  their  time  sleeping 
or  idling  beneath  the  shade  of  acacias  while  the 
animals  wander  at  no  great  range.  In  the  cool 
of  the  evening  the  herd-boys  wake  to  exertion, 
and  if  flocks  have  strayed  while  unattended,  they 
have  merely  to  follow  their  footprints  in  the  tell- 
tale sand  to  come  up  with  them  and  drive  them 
home  to  the  village. 

It  is  pleasant  to  be  near  a  native  village  at 
sundown  :  to  hear  the  clear  voice  of  some  woman 
who  sets  out  along  a  bypath  uttering  some  strange 
peculiar  call  known  only  to  her  herd,  who  will  in 
time  bleat  an  answer ;  then,  so  that  they  may 
be  milked  and  sheltered  for  the  night  from  prowl- 
ing, destructive  jackals,  to  see  her  humour  them 
slowly  homeward,  repeating  her  call  the  while,  as 
the  active  animals  run  from  bush  to  bush  in  haste 
to  ferret  out  a  few  last  mouthfuls  of  supper ; 
while  shadows  of  evening  deepen  and  the  comfort 
of  coolness  sets  men  and  women  rejoicing  in  the 
village.  Then  may  be  heard,  above  the  talk  and 
laughter  of  the  villagers,  the  thud  !  thud  !  thud  I 
of  pestle  poles  as  women  crush  grain  for  the  even- 
ing meal  in  wooden  mortar-bowls,  and  the  cries  of 


240  THE    TUAREGS    OF   AIR 

nursling  livestock  that  await  their  feeding-time— 
the  bleat  of  suckling  goats  and  the  unhappy- 
roaring  call  of  the  milk-hungry,  impatient  camel- 
calves. 

It  is  the  women  who  work :  they  who  carry- 
water,  tend  the  beasts,  collect  firewood,  prepare 
the  evening  meal ;  and,  besides  their  many 
domestic  tasks,  to  them  also  is  credit  due  for 
teaching  their  children  all  that  they  know  of 
home-work  and  bush-work,  of  school -learning  and 
legend,  of  folksong  and  dance. 

I  would  say  of  the  Tuareg  men  that  they  are 
adventurers  of  the  road  ;  seen  at  a  disadvantage 
in  their  villages,  but  active  and  able  when  away 
with  their  caravans — superb  camel-riders,  obser- 
vant trackers,  and  endowed  with  that  marvellous 
second  sense  of  direction  which  belongs  only  to 
natives. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

HEADING   FOR   HOME 

Who  of  us  who  have  lived  in  Out  of  the  World 
places  do  not  know  the  boundless  pleasure  that  is 
ours  in  those  memorable  hours  when  trammels 
are  cast  aside  and,  task-free  and  care-free,  we  are 
at  liberty  to  set  out  Homeward  Bound  I  on  that 
dream- journey  that  has  ever  been  treasured  as 
something  finer  than  gold  and  oft  our  solace  in 
the  bitterest  hours  of  solitude  !  And,  at  Agades, 
while  packing  up  and  preparing  to  go  south,  I 
confess  to  spending  days  of  exultation,  while 
honest  John  went  about  with  a  perpetual  smile 
on  his  face  :  for  he  too  was  at  last  going  home  I 

I  left  Agades,  en  route  to  the  south,  on  10th 
August,  with  a  caravan  of  camels  bearing  boxes 
and  bales  containing  my  complete  collections. 

We  had  no  sooner  departed  than  we  experienced 
terrible  weather :  sandstorms  succeeded  by 
thunderstorms  and  rain,  which  for  the  next  six 
days  caused  me  considerable  anxiety  in  my  efforts 
to  protect  the  precious  cases  of  specimens  from 
damage. 

On  the  second  day  we  camped  below  Tegguidi 
cliff  in  a  regular  land  of  flood,  while  thunderstorm 
raged  and  rain  swept  down  upon  us  in  torrents, 
ftnd  we  spent  a  miserable  night,  standing  ankle- 

241 


242  HEADING   FOR   HOME 

deep  in  water,  unable  to  lie  down  on  the  ground  to 
sleep. 

Next  day  we  were  in  the  centre  of  lakes  of  water, 
and  it  was  impossible  for  the  caravan-camels  to 
travel ;  indeed,  it  was  not  until  late  morning  on 
the  following  day  that  the  water  subsided  suffi- 
ciently to  permit  of  foothold  for  the  camels  and 
we  were  able  to  load  up  and,  with  difficulty,  get 
out  of  the  predicament. 

The  advent  of  Rains  had  set  the  game  moving 
northward  out  of  the  bush-country,  and,  when 
travelling  between  Tegguidi  and  Abellama,  great 
numbers  were  seen  out  on  open  plains  which  had 
been  bleak  and  barren  sand-wastes  when  I  had 
passed  northward,  but  which  now  contained 
patches  of  fresh  grass -greenness.  Dama  Gazelles 
{Gazella  dama  darner gouensis,  subsp.  nov.  : 
Hausa :  Mena)  were  most  numerous,  and  many 
large  herds  of  them  were  seen,  and  I  counted 
herds  of  37,  44,  and  84.  Dorcas  Gazelles  (Gazella 
dorcas  dorcas :  Hausa :  Matakundi)  were  also 
plentiful,  while  I  also  saw  a  few  handsome  White 
Oryx  {Oryx  algazel  algazel). 

A  day  later  Egyptian  kites  and  marabou,  and 
black  and  white  storks  were  very  common  feeding 
on  the  abundance  of  locusts  which  now  infested 
the  green  vegetation,  the  former  catching  locusts 
on  the  wing  or  swooping  to  pick  them  off  grass- 
blades  with  their  well-known  dexterity.  None 
of  these  birds  had  been  present  in  this  locality  in 
the  dry  season. 

On  16th  August  I  reached  the  lonely  post  of 
Aderbissinat,  and  camped  there  for  two  weeks 
while  collecting  waterfowl  and  hunting  again  tov 


^iS'J^^AR  iJMMM^im  i]T<  'j^.^?:^av:3— ^B^w 


A0ADE3    FORT,    BUILT    WITH    CLA.Y-MUD. 


CAUGUT    IN'    FLOOD    IIAIXS    BELOW    TEG«iUII)I. 


242] 


DISTANCE  TRAVELLED  248 

ostrich.  Much  water  had  collected  in  ponds  in 
Aderbissinat  valley,  and  here,  and  henceforth, 
territory  that  had  appeared  bleak  and  barren 
when  I  passed  northward  was  now  green  and 
fresh  and  well-watered,  and  completely  changed 
in  aspect.  Waterfowl  were  unknown  in  the 
territory  in  the  dry  season,  but  now  I  found 
them  plentiful :  geese,  ducks,  waders ;  even  gulls. 
But  the  advent  of  rain  had  brought  one  evil  upon 
Aderbissinat — it  was  infested  with  mosquitoes, 
and  much  malaria  was  prevalent  among  the  native 
soldiers  of  the  Fort. 

Aderbissinat,  as  I  have  already  stated,  is  on  the 
southern  borders  of  Air,  and  in  departing  from  it 
on  30th  August  I  bid  final  farewell  to  the  strange 
land  I  had  come  so  far  to  explore. 

In  pursuit  of  my  zoological  research  I  calculate 
my  camel-caravan  travelled  the  following  dis- 
tances in  Air : 

Miles 
Aderbissinat  to  Agades  .  .  .  .     93J 

Agades  to  Tasessat,  Baguezan  Mountains       .     79 
Tasessat  to  Timia        .  .  .  .  .49 

Timia  to  Iferouan        .  .  .  .  .77 

Iferouan  to  Aguellal    .  .  .  .         .31 

Aguellal  to  Assode       .  .  .  .  .40 

Assod6  to  TJfeia 30 

Timia  to  Tasessat  via  east  side  of  Baguezan       73 
Tasessat  to  Agades      .  .  .  .  .79 

Agades  to  Aouderas  via  Tilisdak  river  .     62 

Aouderas  to  Agades  via  east  side  of  Tarrouaji    93 
Agades  to  Aderbissinat         ....     93J 

Total  caravan  travel  in  Air  .  .         .  800 

Kano  to  Aderbissinat  ....   303 

Aderbissinat  to  Kano  ....  303 

Total  travel  with  camels      »         •         *  1,400 


244  HEADING    FOR   HOME 

There  is  one  point  I  would  like  to  refer  to  before 
departing  from  the  subject  of  Air.  Air  has  been 
termed  in  the  past  on  African  maps  and  in  text- 
books a  great  "  oasis,"  a  word  which  I  take  it 
means  a  "  fertile  place  in  a  sandy  desert  "  ;  a 
concise  enough  explanation,  unless  one  endows  it 
with  a  wider,  less  clearly  defined  latitude.  But 
it  appears  to  me  that  such  a  term  applied  to  Air, 
inferring  as  it  does  that  the  country  is  fertile, 
is  an  imposition  on  the  word  that  is  apt  to  be 
misleading  to  anyone  who  endeavours  to  conceive, 
through  the  medium  of  description,  the  real  com- 
position of  the  country.  And  I  hold  this  belief 
because  during  the  dry  season  /  cannot  imagine  a 
more  barren  country  than  Air  in  all  the  world : 
mountain  after  mountain  of  bare  rock  and  far- 
reaching  lowlands  of  nothing  but  dark  gravel- 
covered  ground,  bleak  as  a  ploughed  field  in 
winter  time,  except  for  scant  rifts  of  green  along 
shallow  sandy  river-beds  or  close  under  mountain 
slopes.  Without  doubt  Air  is  bleak  almost  as 
the  veriest  desert :  the  one  a  vast  lifeless  scene 
of  rock  and  boulder  and  pebble,  the  other  great 
wastes  of  sand.  For  my  own  part,  therefore,  I 
am  happier  and  much  more  sure  of  my  ground 
when,  in  speaking  of  the  country,  I  refer  to  it 
nominally  as  "  The  mountain  land  of  Air,"  and 
am  sure  that  at  the  present  time  it  has  no  real 
claim  to  be  termed  an  "  oasis  "  unless  in  the  height 
of  a  good  season  of  rain. 

From  Aderbissinat  I  travelled  south  to  Tanout, 
where  I  camped  in  the  hope  of  securing  an  ostrich, 
as  I  had  met  with  no  success  in  hunting  for  those 
birds  up  till  that  time.    Here,  however,  owing 


I  RE-ENTER  KANO  245 

solely  to  the  keenness  of  the  French  officer  at  the 
Fort,  I  managed  to  secure  a  very  fine  adult  male 
ostrich,  which  proved  on  later  examination  to  be 
the  same  species  as  is  found  elsewhere  in  Africa : 
Struthio  camelus  camelus.  Those  birds  carry  a 
large  quantity  of  fat,  and  the  task  of  skinning  this 
specimen,  and  cleaning  and  drying  the  skin  free 
of  oily  matter  with  due  regard  to  keeping  the  rich 
plumes  unsoiled,  occupied  no  less  than  two  days. 

Tanout,  like  everywhere  else  now,  was  greatly 
changed  since  I  had  passed  north,  and  I  found  all 
the  inhabitants  in  the  fields  cultivating  large 
areas  of  millet  which  had  already  sprung  up 
almost  to  man-height.  All  natives  declare  it  has 
been  a  bountiful  and  wonderful  season  of  rain ; 
which  has  fallen  here  earlier  than  farther  north. 

North  of  Tanout  the  country  is  uninhabited 
(except  for  a  few  roving  Tuaregs)  and  unculti- 
vated ;  but  on  resuming  the  journey  south  of 
this  Fort,  I  thenceforth  passed  green  fields  of 
millet  each  day. 

I  need  not  dwell  further  on  my  return  journey 
to  Nigeria,  via  Zinder,  for  it  was  henceforth, 
until  our  destination  was  reached,  simply  routine 
of  continual  wearisome  grinding  travel,  while  I 
suffered  from  fitful  attacks  of  malaria  which  I  had 
contracted  at  Aderbissinat. 

On  22nd  September  I  re-entered  Kano.  All 
that  I  find  recorded  in  my  diary  of  this,  to  me, 
memorable  day  is  :  "  The  trail  has  ended — the 
camels  have  gone  and  faithful  Dogo — and  I  miss 
the  fretful  roar  of  the  beasts,  and  the  soft  speech 
of  the  Tuaregs,  and  the  glow  of  the  camp-fire.  .  .  . 
Everyone  is  most  kind  in  welcoming  me  safely 


246  HEADING    FOR   HOME 

back."  But  it  needs  no  diary  to  recall  the  day 
of  my  arrival  in  Kano — when  the  long  trail 
finished,  and  riding  saddles  and  pack  saddles  and 
a  band  of  sorely  tried  camels  were  freed  upon  the 
sand  from  precious  loads  of  specimens  which  they 
had  carried  for  many  months.  That  great  last 
day  when  work  was  done — ^the  burden  and  worry 
of  it  all  thrown  to  the  four  winds — the  warm  hand- 
shake of  friends  awaiting  to  welcome  me  in — a 
day,  indeed,  rare  in  a  lifetime. 

Yes  I  I  was  back  among  my  own  people  at 
last,  had  drifted  in  unannounced  like  the  sand- 
storms that  fitfully  bore  me  company  from  the 
north,  no  one  knowing  of  my  coming  until  a 
ragged  figure  was  in  the  streets  of  the  European 
settlement,  where  civilisation  and  railway  begin 
and  the  desolation  of  the  Sudan  ends. 

Fourteen  hundred  miles  lay  behind  me  in  my 
camels'  tracks,  and  all  of  the  months  of  a  year  but 
one  since  the  day  I  left  home. 

Assuredly,  and  perhaps  I  may  be  forgiven  for 
thinking  so,  it  was  good  to  be  back  on  British 
soil,  good  to  hear  my  own  tongue  spoken,  and 
good  to  look  on  the  broad  grin  on  John's  face. 
"  Kano  is  sweet  past  Zinder,"  he  had  said  long 
ago,  and  boarding  the  steamer  at  Lagos  a  few  days 
later,  while  honest  John  stood  by  with  tears  in  his 
eyes  and  repeated  injunctions  that  "  master " 
was  to  hurry  to  return,  I  said  to  him :  "  Yes, 
John,  what  you  mean  is  :  '  Home  is  sweet  past 
anywhere  else  on  earth— and  you  are  right  I '  " 
And  I  stepped  on  board,  followed  by  John's  part- 
ing cry  ringing  in  my  ears  :  "  Sai  wata  rana  '* 
(Farewell  till  another  day). 


APPENDIX 

NEW  SPECIES  AND   SUBSPECIES 
DISCOVERED  DURING  THE  EXPEDITION 


NEW  SPECIES  AND  SUBSPECIES  OF  MAMMALS 
(OTHER  THAN  RUMINANTS) 

Described  by  Messrs.  Oldfield  Thomas  and  Martin 
A.  C.  HiNTON  of  the  British  Museum  (Natural 
History).  (The  complete  collection  is  fully  de- 
scribed by  Messrs.  Thomas  and  Hinton  in  Novitates 
Zoologicce,  the  Journal  of  the  Tring  Museum,  vol, 
xxviii.,  pp.  1-13,  1921.) 


Wild  cat :  Felis  haussa  sp.  nov.     . 
Caracal    (Lynx) :     Caracal   caracal 

poecilotis  subsp.  nov. 
Pale    sand-coloured    fox :     Vulpes 

pallida  harterti  subsp.  nov. 
Silver-grey  fox  :      Vulpes    rUppelli 

ccBsia  subsp.  nov.  .         . 
Striped   weasel :    Poecilictis  roths- 

childi  sp.  nov. 
Ground         Squirrel :"  Euxerus 

erythropus  agadixis  subsp.  nov. 
Naked-soled      gerbU :       Taterillus 

gracilis  angelus  subsp.  nov. 
Nigerian        hairy-soled        gerbil : 

Gerbillus  nigerice  sp.  nov. 
Dwarf       gerbil :        Desmodilliscus 

bucharuini  sp.  nov. 
Fat-tailed       mouse :        Steatomys 

cuppedius  sp.  nov.         .         . 

247 


Locality  taken. 
Kano  and  Damagarim. 

Baguezan  Mts. 

Damergou  and  Air. 

Air. 

Kano. 

Air. 

Kano. 

Kano  and  Damagarim. 

Kano. 

Kano. 


248  APPENDIX 

Locality  taken. 
Giant  rat :    Cricetomys   buchanani 

sp.  nov.          .         .         .         .     Kano. 
Dwarf    mouse  :      Leggada    haussa 

sp.  nov.          ....     Kano  and  Damagarim. 
Spiney     rock     mouse  :       Acomys 

airensis  sp.  nov.     .         .         .     Air. 
Striped  bush  mouse  :  Lemniscomys 

olga  sp.  nov.  .         .         .     Damergou. 

Jerboa  :    Jaculus  jacuhis  airensis 

subsp.  nov.    ....     Damergou  and  ASx, 
Gundi :       Massouiiera     rothschildi 

sp.  nov.  ....     Air. 

Short-eared  hare  :    Lepus  canopus 

sp.  nov Kano. 

Rock  dassie :    Procavia  buchanani 

sp.  nov.  ....     Air. 

With  regard  to  the  entire  collection  of  mammals 
(other  than  Ruminants),  in  which  is  contained  the  above 
species  and  subspecies  which  are  new,  the  British 
Museum  paper,  in  the  foreword  makes  the  following 
appreciative  statements  : 

"  Thanks  to  the  kindness  of  Lord  Rothschild  we  are 
now  able  to  give  a  list  of  the  complete  collection  made 
by  Captain  Buchanan,  both  of  such  further  mammals 
as  he  obtained  in  the  Kano  region  and  of  those  which 
he  got  northwards  to  Air  itself,  which  he  explored  most 
successfully. 

As  this  is  a  country  which  has  been  hitherto  entirely 
out  of  the  ken  of  mammalogists,  we  were  prepared  to 
expect  a  considerable  number  of  new  forms  to  be  dis- 
covered, but  we  certainly  never  expected  that  so  very 
high  a  proportion  of  the  species  would  be  new.  Indeed 
we  believe  it  may  safely  be  said  that  in  the  history  of 
mammalogy  no  collection  containing  so  high  a  pro- 
portion of  novelties  has  ever  come  to  Europe  from  a 
continental  locality. 

In  all,  the  collection  contains  36  species  and  sub- 
species, of  which  no  less  than  18  are  new,  6  of  these  latter 


APPENDIX  249 

having  been  described  in  our  previous  paper.  Consider- 
ing the  comparatively  barren  nature  of  the  country,  and 
the  number  of  mammals  usually  found  to  occur  in  any 
given  area,  the  capture  of  36  forms  indicates  that  Captain 
Buchanan  has  been  highly  successful  in  getting  a  full 
representation  of  the  fauna  of  the  districts  he  has 
worked  in.  .  ,  . 

"  As  already  stated,  the  National  Museum  has  to 
thank  Lord  Rothschild  for  a  full  set  of  the  mammals 
dealt  with,  including  all  the  types.  The  skins  are  all 
beautifully  prepared,  and  Captain  Buchanan  is  to  be 
congratulated  on  the  great  value  that  his  collection  has 
proved  to  possess." 


NEW  SUBSPECIES  OF  UNGULATE  MAMMALS 

Described  by  Lord  Rothschild,  F.R.S.,  Ph.D.  (The 
complete  collection  of  Ungulate  Mammals  is  fully 
described  by  Lord  Rothschild  in  Novitates  Zoo- 
logicce,  the  Journal  of  the  Tring  Museum,  vol.  xxviii., 
pp.  75-77, 1921.) 

Locality  taken. 
Ami,    Udad,    or   Barbary    sheep : 

Ammotragus  lewia  angusi  sub- 

sp.    nov.  (Largest    head 

collected :    right   horn  21   in. 

over  curve  ;  left  horn  20^  in.)     Air. 
Dama  gazelle  :  Gazella  dama  darner' 

gouensis  subsp.  nov.     (Largest 

head  collected  :  length  of  horns 
6^  ins.)       ....     Damergou. 


18 


250 


APPENDIX 


NEW  SUBSPECIES   OF  BIRDS 

Described  by  Dr.  Ernst  Hartert,  Director  of  Tring 
Museum.  (The  complete  collection  of  Birds  is 
fully  described  by  Dr.  Hartert  in  Novitates  Zoo- 
logicce,  vol,  xxviii.,  pp.  78-141,  1921.) 


Subsaharan  striped  kingfisher : 
Halcyon  chelicuti  eremogiton 
subsp.  nov.    .... 

Straight-billed  wood-hoopoe  :  Scop- 
telus  aterrimus  cryptostictus  sub- 
sp. nov.         .... 

Golden  goatsucker :  Caprimulgus 
eximus  simplicior  subsp.  nov.    . 

Sand  martin :  Riparia  obsoleta 
buchanani  subsp.  nov.     . 

Sombre  rock-chat :  Cercomela  mel- 
anura  airensis  subsp.  nov. 

Northern  ant-eating  wheatear  ^ : 
Myrmecocichla  cethiops  buch- 
anani subsp,  nov.  . 

Saharan  bush-babbler :    Crateropus 

fulvus  buchanani  subsp.  nov.   . 
Grey     bush-babbler :      Crateropiis 

plebejus  anomalus  subsp.  nov.  . 
Long-tailed    sunbird :     Nectarinia 

pulchella  cBgra  subsp.  nov. 
Crested  shrike  :  Prionops  plumatus 

haussarum  subsp.  nov.    . 
Asben     brown      pipit  ^ :      Anthus 

sordidus  asbenaicus  subsp.  nov. 
Dunn's  desert  lark  :    "  Calendula  " 

dunni  pallidor  subsp .  nov. 
Small     rock     sparrow :      Petronia 

dentata  buchanani  subsp.  nov. 
Pencil  -  crowned       weaver  -  bird  : 

Sporopipes   frontalis   pallidior 

subsp.  nov 

1  Described  by  Lord 


Locality  taken. 

Kano  and  Damagarim. 

Air. 

Damagarim  and  Damergou. 

Air. 

Air. 

Kano,    Damagarim,    and 
Damergou. 

Air. 

Kano. 

Kano,  Damagarim,  and  Air. 

Kano. 

Air. 

Damergou. 

Damagarim. 

Damagarim  and  Damergou, 
Bothschild. 


APPENDIX  251 

Dr.  Hartert,  in  his  most  interesting  foreword  to  his 
paper  (which  deals  extensively  with  the  zoo-geographical 
history  of  the  Sahara  and  the  important  information 
which  the  Expedition  has  brought  to  light  in  that  con- 
nection), states  two  facts  which  have  a  particular  bearing 
on  the  value  of  the  collection  of  birds  : 

"  Zoologically  Air  remained  absolutely  unknown  until 
Buchanan's  expedition.  It  was  with  great  satisfaction 
to  myself  that  Lord  Rothschild  fell  in  with  my  ideas 
about  it,  with  his  usual  zeal  and  interest  in  all  scientific 
exploration,  and  that  Captain  Buchanan  accepted  the 
offer  to  make  a  collecting  trip  to  Air  for  the  Tring 
Museum.  The  exploration  of  that  country  has  been  in 
my  mind  since  1886.  ...  It  was  one  of  my  many  un- 
fulfilled dreams  of  life  to  visit  Asben  myself,  but  I  have 
never  given  up  hope  one  day  to  see  natural  history 
specimens  from  there.  .  .  , 

**  Captain  Buchanan  obtained  skins  of  168  species.  In 
a  country  which,  to  a  great  extent,  is  desert  and  there- 
fore poor  in  animal  life,  and  considering  that  he  also 
collected  as  many  Lepidoptera  and  mammaha  as 
possible,  this  is  a  very  fine  collection." 

NEW  SPECIES  AND  SUBSPECIES  OF   BUTTER- 
FLIES AND   MOTHS 

Described  by  Lord  Rothschild,  F.R.S.,  Ph.D.  (The 
complete  collection  is  fully  described  by  Lobd 
Rothschild  in  Noviiates  Zoologicos.) 

BUTTERFLIES 

Locality  taken. 
Teracolits  amelia  f.   arid,   insignia 

f.  nov.  ....     Kano. 

Teracolus    celimene    angusi    subsp. 

nov.      .....     Damagarim. 

Teracolus  liagore  f.  pluv.  liagoroides 

f.  nov.  ....     Air. 


252 


APPENDIX 


Eronia    bugueti    buchanani    subsp. 

nov.      ..... 

Terias  flavicola  f .  arid,  parva  f .  nov. 
Vivachola    livia    palleseens    subsp. 

nov.      ..... 

Spindasis  buchanani  sp.  nov. 


Locality  taken. 

Daraergou. 
Kano. 

Damagarim  and  Air. 
Kano  and  Damagarim. 


MOTHS 


Aegocera  brevivitta  rectilineoides  sub- 
sp. nov.         .         .         .         . 
Timora  buchanani  sp.  nov.     . 
Timora  terracottoides  sp.  nov. 
Adisura  affinis  sp.  nov. 
Eublemma  dissoluta  sp.  nov.  . 
Eublemma  bipartita  sp.  nov.  . 
Eublemma  perkea  sp.  nov. 
Eublemma  pseudonoctna  sp.  nov.     . 
Ozarba  damagarima  sp.  nov.  . 

Pseudozarba  abbreviata  sp.  nov. 
Pseudozarba  bella  sp.  nov. 
Enlocasira  sahariensis  sp.  nov. 
Enlocastra  pseudozarboides  sp.  nov. 
Tar  ache  buchanani  sp.  nov.    . 
Tarache  asbenensis  sp.  nov.    . 
Crypsoiidia  griseola  sp.  nov.  . 
Crypsotidia  parva  sp.  nov. 
Grammodes  buchanani  sp.  nov. 
Parachaldope  mixta  sp.  nov. . 
Raphia  buchanani  sp.  nov.     . 
Rhynchina  sahariensis  sp.  nov. 

Rhynchina  buchanani  sp.  nov. 
Hypena  sordida  sp.  nov. 
Casama  griseola  sp.  nov. 
Acidaliastis    micra    dissimilis    ab. 

saturata  ab.  nov.    . 
Tephrina  quadriplaga  sp.  nov. 
Paropta  buchanani  sp.  nov.     . 
Anadiasa  sahariensis  sp.  nov. 
Pachypasa  concolor  sp.  nov.   . 


Damergou. 

Air. 

Damagarim. 

Damagarim. 

Damagarim. 

Damergou. 

Damagarim. 

Damagarim. 

Damagarim,  Damergou, 

and  Air. 
Air. 
Air. 

Damagarim. 
Air. 

Damergou  and  Air. 
Air. 

Damagarim. 
Kano. 

Damagarim. 
Locality  not  noted. 
Kano. 
Damagarim,  Damergou, 

and  Air. 
Air. 

Damagarim. 
Damagarim  and  Damergou. 

Air. 

Damergou. 

Air. 

Air. 

Air. 


APPENDIX 


253 


Miresa    coccinea    intensior    subsp. 
nov.      ..... 

Ommatopteryx  hampsoni  sp.  nov.    . 
Ommatopteryx  asbenicola  sp.  nov.    . 
Suraitha  albostigmata  sp.  nov. 
Heterographis  medioalba  sp.  nov.     . 
Heterographis  airensis  sp.  nov. 
Heterographis  eximia  sp.  nov. 
Heterographis  sahariensis  sp.  nov.  . 
Heterographis  cretaceogrisea  sp.  nov. 

Homoeosoma  straminea  sp.  nov. 
Homaeosoma  basalis  sp.  nov.  . 
Homoeosoma  asbenicola  sp.  nov. 
Brephia  inconspicua  sp.  nov. 
Brephia  gracilis  sp.  nov. 
Crocidomera  intensifasciata  sp.  nov. 
Pogononeura  buchanani  sp.  nov. 
Anerastia  aurantiaca  sp.  nov. 
Pterothrix  damergouensis  sp.  nov.    . 
Crocolia  africana  sp.  nov.       .         . 
Pyralis  sotidanesis  sp.  nov.     . 

Tyndis  umbrosus  sp.  nov. 
Bostra  asbenicola  sp.  nov. 
Dattima  buchanani  sp.  nov.    . 
Dattima  dubiosa  sp.  nov. 
Marasmia  hampsoni  sp.  nov. 
Loxostege  damergouensis  sp.  nov.     . 
Cybolomia  azzalana  sp.  nov.  . 
Cybolomia  ledereri  sp.  nov.     . 
Cybolomia  fenestrata  sp.  nov. . 
Metasia  angustipennis  sp.  nov. 
Metasia  parallelalis  sp.  nov.    . 
Tegostoma    camparalis    sahariensis 
subsp.  nov 


Locality  taken, 

Damagarim. 

Air. 

Air. 

Air. 

Damergou. 

Air. 

Air. 

Damagarim  and  Air. 

Damagarim,  Damergou, 

and  Air. 
Damagarim. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 

Damergou. 
Damergou  and  Air. 
Damiagarim,  Damergou, 

and  Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Air. 
Kano. 
Damergou. 
Air. 

Damergou. 
Air. 

Damagarim. 
Damagarim. 

Damergou  and  Air. 


20 


MAP  OF 

THE  AUTHOR'S  ROUTE 

Stntute  Miles 


—   .    •  AuVioi's  Route 
0    O  Toivns  and  Villages    A  Campa 
•_  •  ^  .  International  Boundary 

Approxima  le  Boundaries  of 

Provinces 
I     I   Railway 


i^  mbntA  Tamgak 
^fbkrHoih,  }" 
%d'Aguellal 


r 


•;;:>nrnia  Mts\ 


bermat,  (/\\/ ¥^fudi 

N}^  t  B     E  ,  N 

^\  ^JfiMassif  dS 

e^"*     M       I 

^  ilaraaeras 

Tessalatirt 


\Jimboulaga  \  ^' 

Merbiss/fia/  j^ort     •-*  -  ^  '  ~  =  =  =" 
'  sjadelakar 

\Abouzak ^^         .„         .„ 

ueKi  TV  ^o^ihout 

D  A]  M  E^F?   G   H  0  U 

Tanout  Fort 

sMaz/a 


R 


anfzrouft 


Fachi 


e    n    e     r    e 


T      A      R      Y 


O      R      Y 


Bilma  a 


Ago  demo 


Beduatrirno 


from  Lago^ 


East  of  8  Greenwich 


ge  Philip  6  Son    I  f 


The  London  Groyiaphical  Imtitute. 


INDEX 


Abellama,  129 

Aderbissinat  outpost,  125,  243 
Administrative  headqimrters,  78 
Agades,  ancient,  134 
Agalak  mountains,  181 
Agaraguer  mountain,  189 
Agoras  river,  185,  189,  203,  206 
Aguellal  moimtains,  200 
Aguellal,  south  of,  202 
Afr,  barren  nature  of,  163,  167, 
187,  199,  222 

—  entered,  125 

—  mountains  in  view,  134 

—  nature  of  foothills,  149,  151, 
166,  216 

—  northern  end,  195 

—  places  where  water,  160,  162, 
193,  196,  201,  224 

—  stricken,  186 

—  travel  ends,  231 

Altitudes,  Air,  150,  152,  167,  184, 
189,  192,  199,  202,  217,  220,  222, 
224,  228 

Ancient  stone  huts,  171 

Animals  discovered,  247 

—  trapping,  66 

An  isolated  walled  town,  76 
Ants,  white,  67,  146 
Aouderas  mountains,  161,  224 

—  village,  223 
Area  of  Kano,  27 

A  remarkable  individual,  7,  98 

Arra  district,  151 

A8sod6,  204 

Atagoom  and  Saidi,  177 

A  wonderful  city,  19 

Azzal,  220 


Baban  Tubki,  68 
Baguezan,  east  of,  216 

—  motuitains,  151,  164 

—  plateau,  166,  168,  179 


Barbara  village,  63 

Barbary  sheep,  152,  163,  202,  216, 

225,  230 
Beauty  in  Africa,  169 
Beri-Beri  hunter,  a,  97 
Birds,  collecting,  62 
—  rare,  153,  197,  220,  250 
Bilma  oasis,  172 
Border  of  desert,  96,  110 
Boundaries  of  Air,  127,  161,  165 
Bushland,  end  of,  83 
Bustard,  Arab,  89 
Butterflies  and  moths,  67,  218, 251 


Camel  corps,  137 

Camels,  alarming  decline  of,  92 

—  in  mountains,  165,  179 

—  of  Hausaland,  41 

—  on  loading,  46 

—  stolen,  212 

Camps,  hunting,  36,  58,  93,  162, 

166,  213,  225 
Caravans,  composition  of,  41 
Caravan  travelling  started,  48 
Ctirtridges,  62 
Chief  killed  by  robbers,  148,  227 

—  of  Aouderas,  225 

—  of  Baguezan,  148,  153,  162, 174 
aimate,  60,  78,  101,  130,  173 

—  change  ?    188 
Collecting  in  Dswnergou,  106 

—  in  Nigeria,  37 

Collecting,  scientific,  60,  71,  121 
Companionship,  regarding,  219 
Comparison  of  distances,  74 
Construction  of  mud  huts,  24,  77, 

142 
Country  changing,  56,  83,  86 

—  nature  of  Damagarim,  57,  73, 
83,86 

of  Damergou,  86,  89,  93,  246 

—  north  of  Kano,  49 

—  of  bsfcd  repute,  175 


856 


256 


INDEX 


Cultivation  in  Air,  139,  183,  220, 

223 
Currency,  drawbacks  of,  39 

D 

Damagarim  territory,  58 
Dambiri  village,  86 
Damergou  territory,  90 
Date  Air  occupied,  136 

—  of  British  occupation,  20 

—  of  French  occupation,  79 

—  palms,  183,  193,  195,  217,  223 
Declining  population,  77 
Delayed  at  Kano,  35 
Deserted  villages,   152,   186,   189, 

201,  204,  217,  224 
Desert  entered,  the,  129 

—  the  shores  of,  83 
Desolate  country,  133 
Difficulties  at  start,  46 
Discomforts  of  Harmattan,  18 
Discouraging  rumours,  82 
Distance  travelled,  243 
Dogo  village,  57 

Dry  season,  the,  102 
Dwelling,  an  outpost,  145 

E 

Engaging  natives,  6,  23,  178 
Escort,  96,  122,  148,  177,  184 
European  population,  Kano,  21 
Expedition  ends,  246 

F 

Fachi  oasis,  172 

Faodet  mountains,  189 

Food  plentiful  in  Nigeria,  53 

Forest  and  bush,  15 

Fox  trapped,  65,  161 

French  forts,  54,  78,  91,  125,  137 

—  frontier,  54 

—  mission  to  Agades,  136 
Friendly  fact,  a,  20 

G 

Gazelle,  Dama,  104,  151,  216,  242 

—  Dorcas,  59,  89,  104,  151,  191, 
200,  216,  242 

—  Red-fronted,  53,  59,  85,  104 
Geological  change  ?    187 
Giant  walls,  27 

Giraffe,  86,  105,  113 
Gorge,  mouth  of  Timia,  182 


Goundai  motmtain,  185,  206 
Grain,  chief  native  food,  139 
Grain-growing  cotintry,  90,  245 
Green  growth,  217,  242,  245 
Ground-nut  boom,  49 
Growing  poverty,  86 
Guarding  camels,  160 
Guide,  a  native,  184,  197 
Guns,  61 

H 

Harmattan,  the,  17,  52,  56 
Hausa  names  of  game,  105 

—  phrasing,  34 

—  race,  boundary  of,  81,  87 

—  salutation,  24 

Heat  intense,  78,   103,   128,  130, 

223 
Hive  of  industry,  a,  28 
Homeward !  241 
Horses,  country  unfit  for,  113 

—  Kano,  30 
Hunting,  a  morning's,  61 

—  unlucky,  103,  110,  120 
Huts  of  Kano,  22 


Iferouan,  194 

Igouloulof,  185 

Illness,  131 

Inhabited  villages.  Air,  139 


Jigawa,  53 

John,  1,  51,  122,  246 


Kano  market,  29 
—  Northern  Nigeria,  16 
Kano's  defences,  27 
Kings,  primitive,  143 
Kites,  Egyptian,  242 
Korrigum,  105 


Lagos,  10 

Lagos-Kano  railway,  13 

Lagos  lagoon,  5 

Land  of  immense  possibilities,  16 

Life  in  Kano,  31 

Lost  ammunition,^37 


INDEX 


257 


M 

Magaria  fort,  54 

Malaria,  222,  243 

Map  and  compass,  198,  204 

Margin  of  mountainland,  the,  231 

Market,  village,  87 

Military  force  in  Air,  137 

—  nile,  77 
Mirage,  220 

Modes  of  transport,  29 
Mosque,  Assode,  205 

—  Tintaghoda,   193 
Mosquitoes,  191,  243 
Mountain  climate,  173 

—  scenery,  wild,  180,  224 
— stronghold,  165,  169 
Mountains,  rugged,  153 

N 

Native  dress,  235 

—  hunter,  a,  99,  122 

—  limitations,  2 

—  personnel,  35 

—  population,  Agades,  138 
Air,  232 

Baguezan,  172 

Damergou,  92 

Kano,  21 

—  scouts,  148 

—  soldiers,  138 

—  taxidermists,  9 

—  weapons,  97 

Natives  of  Deunagarim,  68,  77,  80 

—  of  Lagos,  1 1 

—  shot,  211 

—  suspicious,  174 

—  uneasy,  82,  121 
Nigeria's  needs,  14 
Northern  Air,  177 
Notability  of  loced  kings,  143 


Oasis,  the  term,  244 
Oryx,  white,  105,  113,  242 
Ostrich  foods,  116 

—  himting,  95,  245 

—  scarcity  of,  108 

—  trap,  118 
Outfit,  39 


Palm  belts,  16 

Pass  into  Btiguezan,  165,  179 


Pets,  54 

"  Pigeon  English,"  33 
Pilgrim  routes,  old,  135,  221 
Plants,  Kano,  common,  17 
Population  grows  less,  58,  77 
Preparations  for  journey,  39 
Prestige  of  white  men,  125 
Produce  of  Air,  139 
Prospering  trade,  50 


Race,  a  question  of,  2 

Rainfall  scant,  90,  115 

Rains,    159,    161,    185,   217,   222, 

227,  230,  241,  245 
Rains,  local,  219 
Remote  territory,  38,  75 
Rising  of  1916,  137,  186 
Robber  tracks,  194,  207 
Robbers  attack  Timia,  209,  213 

—  dread  of,  97,  157,  223 

—  Hogar,  214 

—  persistent,  137,  227 
Routine  of  travelling,  61 
Ruins  of  the  past,  171,  187 
Rumours  of  robbers,  82 

S 

Sahara  Desert,  129 

—  remote,  38 

Sand  and  bleakness,  18 
Sandstorms,  241 
Sand  tracks,  heavy,  56 
Scarcity  of  food,  83,  138,  200 

—  of  water,  89,  93,  126,  228 
Sentry  posted,  185 
Skinning  lessons,  8 

—  specimens,  67 
Skins  complete,  68,  70 
Solitude,  weight  of,  75 
Spring  for  a  moment,  229 
Sultan  of  Agades,  traitor,  137 
Sultem's  palace,  140 
Suspicious  of  stranger,  164 


Ttikoukout  country,  95,  110 
Tamgedc  mountains,  192 
Tanout,  88 
Tarrouaji  hills,  228 
Tarusszgreet  summit,  167 
Tebemit  valley,  216 
Tegguidi  cliff,  132 
Teouar  village,  217 


258 


INDEX 


Thiinderstorms,  189,  219,  241 
Time  to  hunt,  61 
Timia,  183 

Tom-tom  proclamations,  87 
Tragedy,  relics  of  a,  159 
Transport  animals,  41 
Travel  by  night,  123 
Treaty     between      Britain 

France,  79 
Trees  of  Air,  149,  151,  194 
Tuareg  huts,  170,  183 
—  natives,  93,  138,  173,  232 

U 

Untravelled  land,  172 


Vegetable  gardens,  65 


and 


Villages  in  Baguezan  mountains, 
170 

W 

Walls  of  Kano,  the,  27 

—  of  Zinder,  76 

Wares  in  native  markets,  29 
Water,  foul,  203 
Wild  life  of  Kano,  36 

—  men,  190 
Wireless,  137 


Yashmak,  234 


Zinder,  73 

Zoological  geography,  69,  72 


Printed  by  lJazcl\  Walton  dt  Tiney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylesbury,  England, 


V: 


'r\ 


THE  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

Santa  Barbara 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW. 


Series  9482 


A     000  904  261     5 


